I love it when a survey confirms good news, don’t you? It’s so much better than the opposite.

According to a survey conducted by the ADA Council on Dental Practice earlier this year, nearly 97 percent of American dental practices reported that they had a plan for responding to medical emergencies in the office.

Great job, dentists!

The results of this survey are available online at ADA.org/emergencymedicalsurvey.

Dr. Craig Ratner serves as chairman of the Council on Dental Practice for the ADA. "According to the survey, dental practices report that they are largely prepared for medical emergencies that might happen in an office," said Dr. Ratner. "It also revealed that some of the most commonly occurring medical emergencies are situations that can occur almost anywhere."

What are the top three dental emergencies that occur? Glad you asked.

The top three medical emergencies that required medical treatment that have occurred in practice within the previous 12 months were:

  • Syncope (39.8 percent)
  • Epinephrine reaction (37.4 percent)
  • Postural hypotension (33.9 percent)

Most practices — more than 86 percent — reported that they have trained their team members on how to respond to medical emergencies that can occur in the practice. Also, most practices (96.5 percent) have at least one staff person trained in Basic Life Support as offered by the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross.

"The Council on Dental Practice conducts surveys like this one because they provide valuable information about our members," said Dr. Ratner. Additionally, the results also enable the Council to share information with other agencies in the Association to develop resources and training opportunities that will help members succeed in all aspects of their practices, including during unforeseen emergencies.

The CDP Survey on Preparedness for Medical Emergencies in the Dental Practice was emailed to a random sample of professionally active licensed dentists in the U.S. The survey was completed by 529 individuals.

The ADA website has a number of resources available to help dentists prepare for medical emergencies at ADA.org/medicalemergencies.

Additionally, this fall, the ADA will publish a new manual titled Medical Emergencies in the Dental Office: Response Guide that can be preordered at ADA.org/emergencyresponseguide.