Postoperative dental pain--a comparative study of anti-inflammatory and analgesic agents

Intravenous dexamethasone and diclofenac were evaluated in a double blind randomised trial, relative to an opioid (pentazocine) and placebo (saline), in 160 patients undergoing extraction of impacted lower third molar teeth. Test drugs were administered intravenously before surgery to provide postoperative analgesia. Following the operation, pain was assessed using a 10 cm visual analogue scale. Patients who received diclofenac reported significantly less pain than others 30 minutes after surgery (p less than 0.05). Pain scores on the day following surgery were also significantly lower in the diclofenac group compared to the opioid and placebo groups (p less than 0.05) but not less than those who received dexamethasone--possibly indicating a long term advantage of the anti-inflammatory drugs. Vomiting was a problem in the opioid group.