Survey response of oral and maxillofacial surgeons on invasive procedures in patients using antithrombotic medication.

The aim was to evaluate the management strategies of Dutch oral and maxillofacial surgeons when performing invasive dental or oral surgery in patients using oral antithrombotic medication (OAM). In November 2009 a survey was mailed to all 213 members of the Dutch Society for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. A response rate of 57% was achieved with 79 surveys returned through mail and 38 surveys answered through the Internet. The results show that many different treatment strategies are advocated by Dutch oral and maxillofacial surgeons, regarding preferred international normalised ratio (INR) value and continuation or discontinuation of OAM prior to invasive dental or oral surgery. The risk of bleeding during or after an invasive dental procedure was overestimated. A need for a practice guideline on this topic was expressed by 73% of respondents.