ABSTRACT:
Objective: To evaluate the analgesic efficacy of paracetamol(500mg) and ketorolac(10mg) after dental extractions. Methods: A prospective study was conducted during the academic year September-November 2017, randomly among 20 dental patients who visited the outpatient Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Saveetha Dental College, Saveetha University, Chennai, for single tooth extraction. 20 patients were randomized into two treatment groups (each with 10 patients), group A received Paracetamol 500 mg orally and group B received Ketorolac 10 mg orally immediately after dental extraction procedure. Pain intensity levels of patients were measured using the visual Analog scale (VAS) at different time intervals and compared between the two groups. Data collected were analyzed with Statistical Package for Social Sciences for Windows, Version 16.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) and results obtained. Results: Patients who received Ketorolac had lower pain intensity compared with patients who received Paracetamol. The duration of analgesia was longer in the Ketorolac group when compared with the Paracetamol group. There was a statistically significant difference in pain scores between ketorolac and paracetamol groups at p<0.05. Conclusion: Ketorolac 10 mg is more effective than Paracetamol 500mg as an analgesic after dental extractions.