Comparative Efficacy of Analgesics for Pain Relief in Patients with Symptomatic Irreversible Pulpitis Prior to Emergency Endodontic Treatment: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Introduction: This study aimed to compare the efficacy of ibuprofen, Novafen, mefenamic acid (MA), and celecoxib for pain relief in patients with symptomatic irreversible pulpitis prior to emergency endodontic treatment. Materials and Methods: This clinical trial was conducted on 120 patients with moderate to severe pain due to symptomatic irreversible pulpitis seeking emergency endodontic treatment. The patients were randomly divided into 4 groups to receive Novafen, MA, Celecoxib, and ibuprofen. The pain score of patients was measured before and 1 hour after analgesic intake using a visual analog scale (VAS). The success of analgesic treatment was analyzed by the binary logistic regression model. Results: A total of 117 patients including 76 females and 41 males with a mean age of 30.29 years completed the study and were statistically analyzed. Ibuprofen had the highest analgesic efficacy followed by Novafen, and caused a significantly greater reduction in pain score compared with MA and celecoxib [OR (Ibuprofen vs MA)=1.28, OR (Ibuprofen vs Celecoxib)=3.74, OR (Novafen vs MA)=2.94, OR (Novafen vs Celecoxib)=2.94, P<0.05]. Ibuprofen and Novafen had no significant difference in analgesic efficacy (P>0.05). Baseline pain score was a predictive factor for the success of analgesics (P<0.05). The success of analgesic treatment decreased by 0.68 times with each unit increase in pain score (P<0.05). Gender and age of patients had no significant effect on success of analgesics (P>0.05). Conclusion: Both ibuprofen and Novafen can serve as the analgesics of choice for pain relief in patients with symptomatic irreversible pulpitis with moderate to severe pain when emergency endodontic treatment cannot be immediately performed.

Measurement of Copper ion Extrusion from the Apex of Human Teeth with Single Canals Following of Electrophoresis.

OBJECTIVE: Preventing bacterial overgrowth is an essential component of successful root canal treatment. Increasing the penetration of antimicrobial substances into the canal through electrophoresis is one of the possible methods. This study aimed to measure the copper ions extruding from the root apex after using an electrophoresis device (Depotphorese®) in human teeth with single canals. METHODS: In this ex-vivo study, thirty extracted human teeth with single canals were randomly divided into 2 groups. Group 1 as root canal preparation (WP) and group 2 as control (without root canal preparation). Each sample was individually fixed by alginate in a 5 ml sterile Eppendorf tube (microcentrifuge tube), and the root end was in contact with the distilled water solution. Ions derived from calcium hydroxide plus cupper paste (Cupral®) which mobilized via a low current electric field (1.5 mA/min for10 min) by Depotphorese® device. The copper ions in water solution were measured by spectrophotometric and supernatant methods. RESULTS: Copper ions were extruded from the end of the apex in two groups. However, based on the results of the t-test; copper ion penetration was significantly lower in the control group compared to the WP group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Electrophoresis increased copper extrusion from the apical foramen. Although the root canal preparation increases the copper ion output in an ex-vivo environment, the amount of copper extruded from the root apex end was lower than the toxic dose. It seems that electrophoresis of copper plus calcium hydroxide mixture in endodontic treatments can be a safe procedure.