Influence of the volume of surgical intervention on the severity of pain in patients after orthognathic surgery

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The treatment of patients with jaw abnormalities involves orthognathic surgery, a consequence of which is postoperative pain. Considerable research is allocated to the study of pain and its management because pain affects the comfort of patients during rehabilitation. Currently, the factors that are responsible for the severity of postoperative pain syndrome remains debatable. Additionally, before surgical treatment, patients are concerned about the intensity of postoperative pain and its relationship with the extent of surgery. Owing to existing disagreements, primarily regarding the relationship between the volume of surgical intervention and the intensity of pain, conducting this study is critical.
 AIM: To identify factors that directly influence postoperative pain experienced by patients.
 MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pain intensity in patients on day 2 following orthognathic surgery was measured using visual analog scale (VAS).
 RESULTS: During the study, patients after orthognathic surgery were divided into groups based on the extent of surgery, sex, age, and duration of surgery to compare their VAS pain intensity scores. No significant difference was found in the average VAS scores of patients’ pain intensity (p 0.05) between the groups.
 CONCLUSION: The volume and duration of orthognathic surgery, age, and sex of the patients did not affect the intensity of pain.