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Updated: May 15, 2026

Acupoint Needle-Embedding Combined with Ironing Therapy for Postoperative Pain After Anal Surgery
Published on: June 23, 2023
Will adding acetaminophen (paracetamol) to ibuprofen be more effective in relieving postoperative pain on symptomatic
1NYU College of Dentistry, New York, USA.
Design:
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention:
Patients with a clinical diagnosis of a symptomatic tooth with a pulpal diagnosis of necrosis and moderate to severe pain at the time of treatment were randomised to either 80 capsules of 150mg ibuprofen or 80 capsules of 150mg ibuprofen/250mg acetaminophen. Patients were to take four capsules every six hours. Escape medication (hydrocodone/acetaminophen) was also available; if patients had significant swelling or fever, they were seen clinically. Patients' preoperative pain was assessed on the/a visual analogue scale (VAS). Patients also received a six-day diary to be completed after anaesthesia wore off and every morning for five days, to record pain, symptoms and the number of capsules taken.
Outcome Measure:
The main outcome measures were pain and medication use.
Results:
No significant differences were found between the two groups.
Conclusions:
There were decreases in pain levels and analgesic use over time for the ibuprofen and ibuprofen/acetaminophen groups. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups for analgesic use or escape medication use. Approximately 20% of patients in both groups required escape medication to control pain.
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