Comparison of chewing gum and ibuprofen in alleviating orthodontic pain: a single centre, randomised clinical trial

Abstract

Abstract Background The aim of the present three-arm parallel trial was to compare the effectiveness of chewing gum and ibuprofen in the control of orthodontic pain. Methods Patients to undergo orthodontic treatment at a private orthodontic clinic were randomly divided into three parallel groups, each of which took either a placebo, ibuprofen or chewing gum. The eligibility criteria included patients in the full permanent dentition with moderate crowding requiring the extraction of two mandibular and two maxillary premolars. The main outcome was the patient’s level of discomfort, which was assessed by a 0–10 numeric rating scale (NRS) at two hours, six hours, at bedtime, 24 hours, two days, three days and seven days after the placement of initial arch wires in four functions including chewing, biting, occluding back teeth, and occluding front teeth. Randomisation was accomplished according to the patient’s clinic entrance number and by using a table of random numbers. The patients in the placebo and ibuprofen groups were blinded to the type of medication used. The differences in the groups were analysed using repeated measures ANOVA. Results Sixty-six patients between 12 and 30 years were randomised in a 1:1:1 ratio. The pain questionnaire response rate was 100% in the three groups, but six patients were excluded and consequently 60 patients were analysed (N = 20 in each group). There was no significant difference between the chewing gum and ibuprofen groups during any oral function at any time point (p > 0.05). However, repeated measures ANOVA showed that patients in the placebo group experienced significantly higher pain scores compared with patients in the ibuprofen and chewing gum groups at two hours, six hours, at bedtime, at 24 hours and two days after initial arch wire placement (p < 0.05). No patient harm was observed in this study. Conclusions In contrast to the common orthodontic belief that gum chewing may lead to bracket breakage, it seems that chewing gum is as beneficial as medication for pain relief and can be a recommended alternative during orthodontic treatment.