Comparative Assessment of the Effect of Ibuprofen and Etodolac on Edema, Trismus, and Pain in Lower Third Molar Surgery: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

PURPOSE: To compare the efficacy of ibuprofen (IBU) and etodolac (ETO) for controlling pain, edema, and trismus after extraction of lower third molars.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty adolescents and adults with 2 impacted mandibular-third molars (in similar positions) were selected for the study. Patients were randomly assigned either to the IBU group (600 mg of IBU 3 times a day for 3 days) or to the ETO group (300 mg of ETO 3 times a day for 3 days). Drugs were administered immediately after dental extraction.

RESULTS: During the first 2 days after extraction, swelling was more pronounced in the IBU group than in the ETO group (P = .033). Seven days after surgery, there was no difference in the degree of edema between the groups. At the 2- and 7-day evaluation points, mouth opening was significantly more reduced in the IBU group than in the ETO group (P < .05). After the first 6 hours, the ETO group had more effective pain relief (P < .05), but after this time point, both groups reported similar degrees of relief. Compared with the IBU group, the ETO group had a lower need for administration of additional rescue analgesics.

CONCLUSIONS: After extraction of impacted lower third molars, we found that swelling, trismus, and pain were more effectively controlled with ETO than with IBU.