Assessment of Preemptive Analgesia with Etodolac in Conventional and Flapless Dental Implant Surgeries

OpenAlex English

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effects of preemptive single-dose etodolac administration on pain prevention and patient comfort following conventional flapped and flapless dental implant surgeries. Material and Methods: Thirty-two patients who had bilateral partial or total edentulism in the upper jaw were divided into two groups. Half of the patients were selected for conventional surgery and half for flapless surgery. Each patient received etodolac, 600 mg, or a placebo randomly one hour before surgery. Pain intensity and discomfort scores were recorded by participants based on a visual analog scale and four-point verbal rating scale at the postoperative first, second, fourth, sixth, 12th, 24th, and 48th hours. Furthermore, it was suggested that the patients use a rescue analgesic only if the pain was intolerable and to record it. Results: Etodolac was superior to placebo in both the traditional and flapless surgery groups, and the results were better in the flapless surgery-etodolac premedication group, especially at the second, fourth, and sixth hours. Pain and discomfort scores and rescue medication use were similar in the conventional surgery-etodolac premedication group and the flapless surgery-placebo premedication group. Conclusion: The findings of this study suggest that the preemptive single-dose etodolac (600 mg) medication was considerably effective in the management of postoperative pain and discomfort following both surgeries.