Effects of three oral analgesics on postoperative pain following root canal preparation: a controlled clinical trial

Mehrvarzfar P, Abbott PV, Saghiri MA, Delvarani A, Asgar K, Lotfi M, Karamifar K, Kharazifard MJ, Khabazi H. Effects of three oral analgesics on postoperative pain following root canal preparation: a controlled clinical trial. International Endodontic Journal, 45, 76–82, 2012. Aim To compare the effects of single doses of three oral medications on postoperative pain following instrumentation of root canals in teeth with irreversible pulpitis. Methodology In this double‐blind clinical trial, 100 patients who had anterior or premolar teeth with irreversible pulpitis without any signs and symptoms of acute or chronic apical periodontitis and moderate to severe pain were divided by balanced block random allocation into four groups of 25 each, a control group receiving a placebo medication, and three experimental groups receiving a single dose of either Tramadol (100 mg), Novafen (325 mg of paracetamol, 200 mg ibuprofen and 40 mg caffeine anhydrous) or Naproxen (500 mg) immediately after the first appointment where the pulp was removed, and the canals were fully prepared. The intensity of pain was scored based on 10‐point VAS before and after treatment for up to 24 h postoperatively. Data were submitted to repeated analysis of variance. Results At the 6, 12 and 24 h postoperative intervals after drug administration, the intensity of pain was significantly lower in the experimental groups than in the placebo group (P