COMPARISON OF ANESTHETIC GEL AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY GEL IN PAIN MANAGEMENT DURING INITIAL ALIGNMENT OF FIXED ORTHODONTICS.

J Peop Univ Med Health Sci. 2025:15(3), 132-138. http://doi.org/10.46536/jpumhs/2025/15.03.668

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The pain is a usual part of the fixed orthodontic treatment and ranks amongst its
most common side effects. In the management of this discomfort, a range of strategies have been
employed in the clinical practices including NSAIDs and topical anesthetics etc. OBJECTIVE: To
determine the therapeutic effectiveness of anesthetic gel versus anti-inflammatory gel in the pain
management during the initial phases of alignment of fixed orthodontics. METHODS: A randomized
clinical trial was conducted in the Orthodontics Department at DIKIOHS over six months from
October 2024 to March 2025. Patients aged 17–35 years undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment of
either gender were enrolled. The oral cavity each participant was divided: a 5% anesthetic gel was
applied twice daily to the left side, and an anti-inflammatory gel to the right side, during the initial
alignment phase. Pain intensity was recorded using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) on days 15 and
30. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 26. RESULTS: A total of 32 patients (mean age
19.0 ± 5.47 years; 56.3% female) were enrolled. Mean VAS pain scores differed between gels at day
15, with significantly lower the pain scores on the anti-inflammatory side (2.90 ± 1.61) compared to
the anesthetic side (3.65 ± 1.58), (p=0.053). By day 30, pain scores were nearly identical (1.96 ± 1.25
vs. 1.93 ± 1.11; p=0.941). Additionally, gender-based comparisons showed slightly higher pain in
females at both time points. Overall, pain decreased significantly over time for both gels and genders,
with no statistically significant difference (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: Both anesthetic and anti
inflammatory gels observed to be effective in reducing orthodontic pain during the initial alignment
phase, with pain progressively declining over time for both, showing greater pain reduction with the
anti-inflammatory gel on day 15, suggesting the anti-inflammatory gel may offer earlier pain relief.