Antibiotic use in dentistry of bacteria from advanced caries. The first line of treatment is the removal of the source of inflammation or infection by local operative measures. Generally, the abscess can be eradicated through surgical drainage alone; however this is sometimes inadequate. Therefore, systemic antibiotic treatment may be required, but only if there is evidence of spreading infection. As the bacteria involved are known, antibiotic therapy selection can be specific, based on published susceptibilities. Penicillin in the form of amoxicillin is the most common antibiotic to use. However, 3% of the patient population is allergic to penicillin, so erythromycin is often used in
Antibiotic use of antibiotics in modern medicine began with the discovery of synthetic antibiotics derived from dyes. Synthetic antibiotic chemotherapy as a science and development of antibacterials began in Germany with Paul Ehrlich in the late 1880s. Ehrlich noted certain dyes would color human, animal, or bacterial cells, whereas others did not. He then proposed the idea that it might be possible to create chemicals that would act as a selective drug that would bind to and kill bacteria without harming the human host. After screening hundreds of dyes against various organisms, in 1907, he discovered a medicinally useful drug, the