The University of Maryland School of Dentistry is taking steps to curb opioid misuse using new software paired with a state database.According to the American Dental Association, dentists write about 31 percent of opioid prescriptions for patients between the ages of 10 and 19. High school students who receive an opioid are 33 percent more likely to misuse a prescription between the ages of 18 and 23. Just like physicians, dentists are looking inward to see how they can change the opioid misuse picture. Dentist Dr. Henry Lee said both patients and doctors have to be held accountable. "With this software, if any practitioner has written a prescription for a narcotic, it shows up," Lee said. The Maryland Prescription Drug Monitoring Program requires healthcare providers check a patient's medical history against the database before prescribing opioids.Rockville-based company DrFirst has developed software, iPrescribe, to help doctors access a patient's prescription history, and if anything seems fishy, backline software allows them to securely text a patient's doctor before writing a prescription to see if the patient has been shopping for narcotics. "(The software helps) to say we have this patient in our chair and they're taking this narcotic. What have you been prescribing? And, how do you want to address this issue?" Lee said.Dentists are then able to use the software to send a prescription directly to the pharmacy. There's no paper script, and that eliminates the possibility of someone forging a prescription. The tools will be used at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry. Dean Mark Reynolds said the program is huge for Maryland and for the dental school's students. "As of July 1, the implementation of the software will be in place. All of our students and faculty will be trained on the e-prescribing software platform," Reynolds said. The dental school is the largest oral health practice in the state of Maryland, putting it on the cutting edge of fighting an epidemic. "The majority of dentists who practice dental care in the state of Maryland are graduates of the University of Maryland, so we are very impactful in the healthcare workforce," Reynolds said. Starting July 1, the Maryland Prescription Drug Monitoring Program mandate will require healthcare providers to check medication history at the online registry before prescribing an opioid.