Patients' assessment of surgical removal of mandibular third molars. An inquiry study

The aim of this study was to find out patients' experience of pain and discomfort in connection with removal of lower third molars under local anaesthesia. Patients consecutively referred to the Oral and Maxillofacial Unit in Halmstad for removal of lower impacted third molars were the selection for this study. Three surgeons operated 294 lower third molars under local anaesthesia. The Visual Analogue Scale was used to register pain at several occasions during the surgical performance. The patients experienced the operation as an acceptable procedure and the most painful event during the operation was the injection of local anaesthetic solution. The study showed that the surgical procedure was very well tolerated by the patients with only a minor incident of inconvenience or excessive pain.