Intrapocket topical anesthetic versus injected anesthetic for pain control during scaling and root planing in adult patients: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: In this systematic review and meta-analysis, the authors evaluated the pain during scaling and root planing with use of topical anesthetic versus that with the use of injected anesthetic in adult patients.

TYPES OF STUDIES REVIEWED: The authors searched 6 databases for randomized clinical trials in which the investigators compared the clinical effectiveness of intrapocket and injectable anesthetics. The primary outcome was the risk of developing pain or intensity of pain. Quality assessment followed the guidelines from the Cochrane Collaboration's risk-of-bias tool. The authors performed meta-analyses on studies considered at low and unclear risk of bias.

RESULTS: From 976 articles identified, 6 remained in the qualitative synthesis (4 at low and 2 at unclear risk of bias). Injected anesthetic produced lower pain intensity than did anesthetic gel (P = .03) and required less rescue anesthetic than did topical anesthetic (P < .0001). There was no difference in patient preference (P = .09).

CONCLUSIONS AND PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: Injected anesthetic decreased the intensity of pain and the need for rescue anesthetic during scaling and root planing, but the risk of developing pain yielded similar results for injected and topical anesthetics.