Ketoprofen Dental Pain Study.

Ketoprofen is a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug, recently approved as an over-the-counter (OTC) analgesic at a 12.5 mg dosage strength. This is the first published study which explores the analgesic efficacy and safety of ketoprofen 12.5 mg in patients experiencing pain following the removal of impacted third molars. This study was single-dose, double-blind and randomized utilizing a 6-hour in-patient evaluation period. Patients ingested a single dose of ketoprofen 12.5 mg (n = 30), ketoprofen 37.5 mg (n = 32) or placebo (n = 15) when their post-surgical pain reached at least a moderate intensity on a 5-point categorical (CAT) scale and greater than 50 mm on a 100 mm visual analog scale (VAS). Measures of pain intensity and relief were gathered every 20 minutes for the first 2 hours, and then hourly from hours 3 through 6. Adverse drug reactions were also recorded as they occurred. Both dosages of ketoprofen were significantly more efficacious than placebo (two way ANOVAs, p < 0.05). For pain intensity difference (PID) and pain relief, the 12.5 mg dose exhibited statistical superiority from hours 1 through 3, while the 37.5 mg dose exhibited statistical superiority from 40 minutes through 4 hours. Ketoprofen 37.5 mg was significantly more efficacious than the 12.5 mg dose only at 40 minutes for PID(VAS) and relief, and at 60 minutes for PID(VAS). Both ketoprofen dosages displayed significantly greater 3-hr, 4-hr and 6-hr summary analgesic measures (SPID(VAS), SPID(CAT), TOTPAR) than placebo, with the exception of the 6-hr SPID(CAT) measure for ketoprofen 12.5 mg. No serious side effects were observed in this study. We conclude that ketoprofen in a dose range of 12.5 mg to 37.5 mg is a safe and effective analgesic for the relief of post-operative dental pain.

Assessing the duration of mandibular soft tissue anesthesia.

Dentists often employ solutions of 3 percent mepivacaine or 4 percent prilocaine without a vasoconstrictor in pediatric patients in an attempt to reduce the duration of mandibular soft tissue anesthesia. The authors compared the time course of soft tissue anesthesia produced by these solutions with that of 2 percent lidocaine plus 1:100,000 epinephrine in 60 adults. They found no reduction in the duration of soft tissue anesthesia when employing 3 percent mepivacaine or 4 percent prilocaine instead of 2 percent lido-epi. Combining these observations with local anesthetic dosage considerations, the authors recommend that 2 percent lido-epi be used when performing mandibular block injections in young children.

Occult malignant breast lesions in 114 patients: relationship to age and the presence of microcalcifications.

This study evaluates the mammographic findings in 352 patients, aged 30-85 years, who underwent spot localization and biopsy for evaluation of nonpalpable breast abnormalities. Malignancy was found at biopsy in 114 cases. The mammographic appearance (specifically, whether grouped microcalcifications, mass, or both were present) was correlated with patient age and histologic findings (specifically, whether the pathologic changes were infiltrating or noninfiltrating in nature). The prevalence of malignant conditions increased directly with age. The presence of grouped microcalcifications as the sole indicator of malignancy was seen in 100% (seven of seven) of the patients in the 30-39-year age group, 64% (18 of 28) in the 40-49-year age group, 37% (11 of 30) in the 50-59-year age group, 30% (seven of 23) in the 60-69-year age group, and 23% (six of 26) in the 70-85-year age group. Of the 49 tumors that were manifested solely as microcalcifications, 34 (69%) were noninfiltrating. The finding of grouped microcalcifications should be aggressively investigated, since it may indicate noninfiltrating carcinoma in an early stage, when the potential for cure is greatest.