Does Single-Dose Preemptive Intravenous Ibuprofen Reduce Postoperative Pain After Third Molar Surgery? A Prospective, Randomized, Double-Blind Clinical Study

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to identify the preemptive analgesic effect of intravenous (IV) ibuprofen before and after mandibular third molar surgery.

Materials and methods: We randomly divided 75 patients into 3 groups. Group 1 received IV ibuprofen 60 minutes before surgery and IV placebo (100 mL of saline) after surgery. Group 2 received IV placebo (100 mL of saline) before surgery and IV ibuprofen 60 minutes after surgery. Finally, group 3 received IV placebo (100 mL of saline) 60 minutes before and after surgery. Postoperative pain was recorded using a visual analog scale at 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12, and 24 hours within the postoperative period. The total dose of rescue acetaminophen intake was recorded during the first 24 hours of the postoperative period.

Results: The efficacy of postoperative analgesia was greater within the preoperative IV ibuprofen group compared with the other groups (P < .001). The placebo group had required more rescue analgesia within the first hour compared with the other groups. The average dose of acetaminophen administered in group 1 was 640 mg compared with 1240 mg in group 2 and 1840 mg in group 3 within the first 24 hours after surgery (P < .001).

Conclusions: The present study has shown that the preemptive use of IV ibuprofen resulted in less pain and a decrease in the requirement for rescue analgesia during the first 24 hours after third molar surgery.