Comparing Postoperative Pain and Recovery in Patients Receiving Conventional versus Laser-assisted Wisdom Teeth...

Area of Science:

• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
• Laser Dentistry
• Minimally Invasive Surgical Techniques

Background:

• Impacted mandibular third molars are a common dental issue requiring surgical extraction.
• Conventional surgical bur extraction can lead to significant postoperative discomfort, including pain, edema, and trismus.
• Patient satisfaction is a crucial outcome measure in surgical procedures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the efficacy of erbium: yttrium-aluminum-garnet (Er: YAG) laser versus conventional surgical bur for impacted mandibular third molar extraction.
• To evaluate postoperative pain, edema, trismus, and patient satisfaction between the two surgical methods.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled study involving 20 participants (18-30 years) with asymptomatic impacted mandibular third molars.
• Participants were divided into two groups: conventional bur extraction (Group A) and Er: YAG laser-assisted extraction (Group B).
• Postoperative pain, edema, and trismus were assessed at multiple time points, and patient satisfaction was measured using a questionnaire.

Main Results:

• The Er: YAG laser group (Group B) demonstrated significantly lower postoperative pain scores compared to the conventional bur group (Group A).
• Reduced swelling (edema) and less severe jaw stiffness (trismus) were observed in patients treated with the Er: YAG laser.
• Patient satisfaction scores were notably higher in the Er: YAG laser group.

Conclusions:

• Er: YAG laser-assisted third molar extraction provides superior outcomes compared to conventional bur methods.
• The laser technique offers significant advantages in mitigating postoperative pain, edema, and trismus.
• Higher patient satisfaction underscores the clinical benefits of using Er: YAG laser for impacted wisdom tooth removal.