Dental management of the hypertensive patient. A narrative review

Approximately 1.13 billion people worldwide are diagnosed with hypertension each year, making it one of the leading cardiovascular risk factors globally. In the dental context, this prevalence implies a high probability of treating hypertensive patients, which requires dentists to be thoroughly familiar with their medical management. It is essential to recognize that, during dental care, these patients may present complications such as hypertensive urgencies and emergencies. Therefore, dentists must be prepared to identify these situations and act immediately, providing appropriate treatment and ensuring timely referral to a medical center when necessary. This review was developed based on a manual selection of articles indexed in the MEDLINE and EBSCOhost databases, using terms such as “hypertension”, “dental management”, and “oral surgery”. The objective is to provide an updated overview that allows for a clear definition and differentiation between hypertensive urgency and emergency, while also delving into the medical and dental management of hypertensive emergencies that may arise during dental care in patients with high blood pressure.