Abstract
Although antibiotic usage revolutionized modern medicine, decades of antibiotics usage have led to critical challenges facing the healthcare system today. The dental practitioner must be an active participant in the appropriate use of antibiotics as an antibiotic steward who is influenced by clinical practice guidelines through the appropriate selection of antibiotic drug regimens. The dental practitioner must include consideration of the probable or confirmed infectious bacteria, antibacterial drug action, the emergence of antibiotic resistance, the potential for adverse antibiotic effects, and patient factors for appropriate antibiotic drug regimen selection.