Pain management following dental trauma and surgical procedures.

Surgical procedures and post-traumatic management of dental patients require effective pain management during treatment, but being considerably more invasive than conservative treatments, pain management is required into the postoperative period. Clinical trials on pain intensity following dental surgical procedures (e.g., 3rd molar extraction, implant placement, periodontal, and endodontic surgery) have shown that pain is most intense approximately 5-6 h after completion of the procedure, reaching its peak levels during the first postoperative day. Greatest consumption of analgesics occurs during the first 48-72 h after 3rd molar extraction. For the management of perioperative pain associated with either conservative or surgical dental treatment, the local anesthetics articaine, lidocaine, mepivacaine, and prilocaine are preferred. These drugs, with a vasoconstrictor, provide a rapid onset and a duration of pulpal anesthesia adequate to complete most dental and surgical procedures painlessly. For management of post-traumatic and postsurgical pain, bupivacaine-administered by an appropriate nerve block-near the conclusion of a surgical procedure, can provide the patient with a pain-free period of up to 12 h. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs represent the most effective drugs for the management of dental postsurgical pain. NSAIDs, as a group in therapeutic doses, have numbers needed to treat (NNTs) ranging from 2 to 3, while opioid analgesics do not approach those for NSAIDs. A protocol for management of pain following surgical procedures and traumatic injuries is discussed in this paper and includes preemptive NSAID; perioperative pain management; postoperative pain management-local anesthesia; postoperative pain management-analgesics; postoperative telephone call.

A randomized split-mouth clinical trial comparing pain experienced during palatal injections with two different computer-controlled local anesthetic delivery systems.

BACKGROUND: Several methods have been proposed to reduce pain during injection. The main aim to this study was to compare the pain perception in patients receiving palatal injections of local anesthesia using two different computer-controlled local anesthetic delivery systems (C-CLAD) - Dentapen® and The STA Wand®). MATERIAL AND METHODS: A randomized, split-mouth and simple blind clinical trial was carried out at the Dental Hospital of the University of Barcelona (Spain) involving a sample of 20 healthy volunteers. Each participant received two palatal injections in the same session (0.3 ml of 3% mepivacaine without vasoconstrictor), using The STA Wand® on one side and the Dentapen® on the contralateral side. The order of the devices and the side of the injections were randomly selected. Pain perception was recorded after each injection using a 10-cm numeric rating scale (NRS). A descriptive and bivariate analysis of the data was performed. RESULTS: Pain perception was similar with both devices (p>0.05). The STA Wand® and Dentapen® groups yielded a mean pain score of 2.40 cm (standard deviation (SD) = 1.47, range 0-6) and 2.35 cm (SD 1.3, range 1-6), respectively. Most participants referred mild pain (80%), and none experienced severe pain. There were no adverse events. CONCLUSIONS: In the majority of cases (80%), both C-CLAD devices allow the administration of local anesthetics in the palatal area with mild pain. Both The STA Wand® and Dentapen® are equally effective in reducing pain perception levels for palatal injections. Key words:Computer-controlled local anesthetic delivery, dental anesthesia; palatal anesthesia, The STA Wand, Dentapen.

Medical emergencies in the dental surgery. Part 1: Preparation of the office and basic management.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM: Medical emergencies can and do happen in the dental surgery. In the 20- to 30-year practice lifetime of the typical dentist, he/she will encounter between five and seven emergency situations. Being prepared in advance of the emergency increases the likelihood of a successful outcome. PURPOSE OF THE PAPER: To prepare members of the dental office staff to be able to promptly recognize and efficiently manage those medical emergency situations that can occur in the dental office environment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Preparation of the dental office to promptly recognize and efficiently manage medical emergencies is predicated on successful implementation of the following four steps: basic life support for ALL members of the dental office staff; creation of a dental office emergency team; activation of emergency medial services (EMS) when indicated; and basic emergency drugs and equipment. The basic emergency algorithm (P->C->A->B->D) is designed for implementation in all emergency situations. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Prompt implementation of the basic emergency management protocol can significantly increase the likelihood of a successful result when medical emergencies occur in the dental office environment.

Faster onset and more comfortable injection with alkalinized 2% lidocaine with epinephrine 1:100,000.

BACKGROUND: The pH of lidocaine with epinephrine in dental cartridges ranges between 2.9 and 4.4. In this pH range, less than 0.1% of the anesthetic is in the de-ionized or "active" form. The acidity of the anesthetic may delay onset and contribute to injection pain. OBJECTIVE: The study compared anesthetic latency and injection pain for alkalinized versus non-alkalinized anesthetic in inferior alveolar nerve blocks (IANBs). METHODS: The study buffered the anesthetic directly in the cartridges using a mixing pen device. The study included 20 participants, each receiving one control and one test IANB injection. The control solution was non-alkalinized 2% lidocaine/epinephrine 1:100,000 at pH 3.85. The test solution was 2% lidocaine/ epinephrine 1:100,000 alkalinized to pH 7.31. Latency was measured using endodontic ice confirmed with an electric pulp tester (EPT), and injection pain was measured using a visual analog scale (VAS). ONSET TIME: With the alkalinized anesthetic, 71% of participants achieved pulpal analgesia in 2 minutes or less. With non-alkalinized anesthetic, 12% achieved pulpal analgesia in 2 minutes or less (P = 0.001). The average time to pulpal analgesia for the non-alkalinized anesthetic was 6:37 (range 0:55 to 13:25). Average time to pulpal analgesia for alkalinized anesthetic was 1:51 (range 0:11 to 6:10) (P = 0.001). INJECTION PAIN RESULTS: 72% of the participants rated the alkalinized injection as more comfortable, 11% rated the non-alkalinized injection as more comfortable, and 17% reported no preference (P = 0.013). Forty-four percent of the patients receiving alkalinized anesthetic rated the injection pain as zero ("no pain") on a 100-mm VAS, compared to 6% of the patients who received non-alkalinized anesthetic (P = 0.056). CONCLUSIONS: Alkalinizing lidocaine with epinephrine toward physiologic pH immediately before injection significantly reduces anesthetic onset time and increases the comfort of the injection. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Clinicians can begin procedures more quickly and give a more comfortable injection by alkalinizing their lidocaine/epinephrine immediately before delivering the injection.

Local anesthesia part 2: technical considerations.

An earlier paper by Becker and Reed provided an in-depth review of the pharmacology of local anesthetics. This continuing education article will discuss the importance to the safe and effective delivery of these drugs, including needle gauge, traditional and alternative injection techniques, and methods to make injections more comfortable to patients.

Is the mandibular nerve block passé?

BACKGROUND: Providing effective pain control is a critical part of dental treatment, yet achieving consistently reliable anesthesia in the mandible has proved elusive. The traditional inferior alveolar nerve block (IANB) has a high failure rate; for example, the failure rate in lateral incisors is 81 percent. As a consequence, new approaches and techniques have been developed. The purpose of this supplement to The Journal of the American Dental Association is to determine whether the mandibular nerve block has become passé. CONCLUSIONS: The high failure rate of the IANB can be frustrating for dentists and lead to discomfort for the patient during treatment. The reasons for this high failure rate include thickness of the cortical plate of bone in adults, thickness of the soft tissue at the injection site leading to increased needle deflection, the difficulty of locating the inferior alveolar nerve and the possibility of accessory innervation. Although the IANB can be unreliable, it is used commonly to provide mandibular anesthesia. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Pain control is an essential part of dental treatment. Alternative injection techniques and devices that can help increase the success rate of mandibular anesthesia are available.

The use of phentolamine mesylate to evaluate mandibular nerve damage following implant placement.

High success rates and long-term predictability of implant therapy have been well documented in the literature. However, complications in implant treatment can arise and include sensory disturbances, especially in the posterior mandible in areas close to the inferior alveolar nerve. Treatment efficacy of sensory disturbances caused by implant placement in this area relies on the expeditious diagnosis of an induced paresthesia. Recently, phentolamine mesylate has been introduced as a reversal agent of local anesthesia with the ability to decrease the requisite time for a patient to return to normal sensation. This article introduces a method for faster detection of a potential paresthesia induced by implant placement in the posterior mandible.

Needle breakage: incidence and prevention.

Since the introduction of nonreusable, stainless steel dental local anesthetic needles, needle breakage has become an extremely rare complication of dental local anesthetic injections. But although rare, dental needle breakage can, and does, occur. Review of the literature and personal experience brings into focus several commonalities which, when avoided, can minimize the risk of needle breakage with the fragment being retained from occurring.

Local anesthesia reversal.

PM (OraVerse) enables the dentist or dental hygienist (where permitted) to significantly decrease the duration of residual STA in patients where such numbness may prove to be potentially injurious (children, geriatric, and special needs patients), or a negative influence on their quality of life (speaking, eating, negative body image). (Note: As of August 3, 2009, dental hygienists are permitted to administer PM in the following states: Alaska, Arkansas, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Nevada, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, and Wisconsin.)

Cardiovascular alterations after injection of 2% lidocaine with norepinephrine 1:50,000 (xylestesin) in rats.

The purpose of the present study is to determine the cardiovascular effects produced by intravascular injection of 2% lidocaine with 20 microg/mL of norepinephrine on systolic, diastolic, and mean arterial pressures and heart rate of rats at the following times: control period, during the injection (first 15 seconds), during the first minute, and at the end of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 minutes after drug administration. The study was performed on 13 male Wistar rats with weights between 200 grams and 220 grams that were awake during the recording of these parameters. The dose administered was proportional to 1 cartridge of local anesthetic (1.8 mL) in an average-size human, which is equivalent to 0.51 mg/kg of lidocaine hydrochloride and 0.51 microg/kg of norepinephrine hydrochloride. The average time of injection was 15.7 seconds. The results of this study showed significant increases in systolic, diastolic, and mean arterial pressure and a noticeable decrease in heart rate. The greatest variation occurred in the systolic blood pressure. The greatest alterations occurred during injection and within the first minute following administration of the anesthetic solution. We would anticipate these changes in the parameters analyzed to be clinically significant. Thus, dentists using 2% lidocaine with norepinephrine 20 mug/mL should be very careful to avoid intravascular injection.