Abstract
PurposeTo study pain perception in 10–15-year-olds, during and after uncomplicated extractions of bilateral maxillary premolars. The study investigated pain’s natural course and made comparisons between the first and second extractions.Methods31 Swedish children in need of orthodontic treatment were identified and consecutively enrolled. Tooth extractions followed a standardised protocol and the two teeth were extracted with at least 10 days between. The participants rated pain intensity using visual analogue scale (VAS) at 14 different time points from treatment and 7 days forward.ResultsThe pain intensity profile followed the same pattern for all patients. Pain intensity peaked 2 h after extractions (mean VASPI 27.3, SD 20.8; median 23.0) when moderate pain intensity (VASPI ≥ 40) was registered for 16 (28%) of 57 cases. After that, there was a rapid decrease in pain intensity notable already at 4 h after extractions. There were no statistically significant differences in any VASPI measurements between the first and second extractions, sexes, or different age groups.ConclusionsThe majority of the participants who undergo uncomplicated bilateral extraction of maxillary premolars experience mild to moderate levels of postoperative pain during a short period of time, with no differences between the first and second extractions. Bilateral tooth extractions is a suitable model for further studies on pain management.
Highlights
Extraction is one of the most frequently performed oral surgical therapies (Al-Khateeb and Alnahar 2008; Ghanei et al 2018), knowledge about natural course of pain perception during and after tooth extraction in children and adolescents is sparse
The present study aims to investigate pain intensity in 10−15-year-olds during and after uncomplicated tooth extractions—orthodontically indicated and standardised bilateral extractions of maxillary premolars—to understand the natural course of pain and to make comparisons between the first and second extractions
62 extractions were performed, but the number of valid VASPI registrations made at home or at school, were lower owing to patients failing to return registrations, visual analogue scale (VAS) not correctly filled out, or excluded when patients had self-administered oral analgesics
Summary
Extraction is one of the most frequently performed oral surgical therapies (Al-Khateeb and Alnahar 2008; Ghanei et al 2018), knowledge about natural course of pain perception during and after tooth extraction in children and adolescents is sparse. Post-extraction pain was investigated in an observational study on 221 children, 2−7 years of age (Acs et al 1986). 38% reported pain experience via a questionnaire that the parents filled out (proxy assessment) at home and returned to the dentist. Both of the above studies have several methodological issues. The patient material spanned a wide age range, both primary and permanent teeth were included, and diagnoses and reasons for extractions or number of extractions were not described. Pain-measuring methods were insufficiently described; the criteria were not defined, and parental reports were the main source of information. Parental and other proxy reports are problematic:
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
