COMPARISON BETWEEN DEXAMETHASONE AND COOL JAW WRAP ON POSTOPERATIVE PAIN AFTER SURGICAL REMOVAL OF LOWER WISDOM TEETH

Abstract

Objective: The aim is to compare between the effect of cool jaw wraps and dexamethasone injection on postoperative pain and evaluate the quality of life after surgical removal of lower wisdom tooth.Methods: Extraction of impacted lower third molar will surgically operate (by the same difficulty of surgical extraction and same operator) on 30 patients, which divide into three groups, each group have 10 patients.We will instruct the patients in cool jaw wrap group to put cool jaw wrap after the operation. While the second group give dexamethasone injection after the operation. The last group which is the control group will left them with the usual instruction postoperatively.This study evaluates the facial pain, swelling, and trismus on days 1,2 and 7 postoperatively. Objective measurements of swelling, pain, and trismus were undertaken at days 1, 2 and 7. The quality of life questionnaire was estimated at day 7 postoperatively.Results: Cool jaw wrap showed no significant differences on the postoperative pain when it used after surgical removal of the lower third molar BUT have significant differences on the Quality of life of patients.Conclusion: Cool jaw face wrap can be recommended as a safe method that participates in some degree to reduce postoperative pain, it easy to handle, comfort, avoiding damage by freezing due to the barrier between cool jaw and skin and the patient can avoid the side effect of dexamethasone and the phobia from the injection.