The effect of buffering of Local anesthetic solution for pain management in third molar surgery

Abstract

AIM: The aim of the study is to evaluate the effect of buffering of local anesthetic solution and comparing it with an unbuffered local anesthetic solution for management of pain in third molar surgery.

MATERIALS & METHODS - A total of 40 patients who were undergoing third molar surgery  was selected for the study by simple random sampling. They were divided into two groups of 20 each. Group 1 received buffered LA (test group) and Group 2 received unbuffered LA (control group). Buffered LA solution was prepared in the chair-side using 8.4% of Sodium Bicarbonate in a ratio of 10:1 where 2ml of LA was mixed with 0.2ml of Sodium Bicarbonate. Pain while injecting LA was measured and presence of postoperative complications were recorded. Results were tabulated using SPSS software.