Dental Management of Medically Compromised Patients: Cardiovascular Diseases

Vocabulary-style flashcards based on Oral Surgery Lecture 1, focusing on the dental management of cardiovascular conditions, emergency protocols, and antibiotic prophylaxis guidelines.

Dyspnea

Shortness of breath.

Palpitations

Sensations of your heartbeating.

Syncope

Temporary loss of consciousness.

Edema of ankles

Swelling that is most commonly associated with heart failure.

Cold pale extremities

A vascular problem related to blood flow to the extremities.

Finger clubbing

Enlargement of the terminal segments of the fingers; may indicate liver or cardiac problems.

Ischemic heart disease (IHD)

Heart problems caused by narrowed heart arteries.

Angina pectoris

Episodes of chest pain caused by myocardial ischaemia resulting from an imbalance between coronary blood flow and oxygen demand.

Stable (typical/classic) angina

The most common form of angina where chest pain occurs during emotional stress or heavy exercise.

Unstable angina

Angina that happens without any triggering effect, often while the patient is at rest.

Prinzmetal angina

Angina caused by coronary artery spasms rather than blockages.

Nitroglycerine (GTN)

A medication responsible for widening coronary vessels to increase blood supply to the cardia; commonly administered sublingually ($0.3-0.6$ mg).

Aspirating syringe

A syringe with a spiral that engages the plunger to ensure local anesthesia is not delivered into a blood vessel, preventing epinephrine from reaching circulation.

Oral diazepam

A benzodiazepine sedative that can be given to patients with angina before their dental visit to reduce stress.

Myocardial infarction (MI)

A heart attack resulting from complete occlusion of a coronary artery by a thrombus, leading to cellular death and necrosis of the myocardium.

Congestive heart failure

A condition where the heart is too weak to pump enough blood to meet metabolic needs due to chronic oxygen deprivation or previous heart damage.

Orthostatic hypotension

A condition in which blood pressure falls significantly when standing up quickly, often caused by medications for heart failure.

Digoxin

A drug used to treat heart failure by slowing down pumping and relaxing the heart; it has toxic interactions with tetracycline and macrolides.

AICDs

Automated implantable cardioverter defibrillators (pacemakers).

Hypertension

A clinical state describing patients with blood pressure exceeding $140/90\,mmHg$.

Rheumatic heart disease

An acute inflammatory condition starting as rheumatic fever (due to beta hemolytic streptococci) that results in scarring and calcification of valves.

Valvular stenosis

Destruction or narrowing of the mitral and aortic valves where they cannot close completely.

Adult Amoxicillin prophylaxis regimen

$2\,g$ Amoxicillin (four $500\,mg$ tablets) taken $1$ hour before treatment orally.

Child prophylaxis regimen (Amoxicillin)

$50\,mg/kg$ of Amoxicillin or Ampicillin.

Clindamycin prophylaxis (Adult)

An alternative regimen for patients allergic to penicillin, consisting of $600\,mg$ taken orally $1$ hour before treatment.