Comparative Effect of Celecoxib, Diclofenac, and Ibuprofen in Controlling Postoperative Pain, Edema, and Trismus After Third Molar Extraction: A Double-Blinded Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

The objective of this study was to compare celecoxib, diclofenac, and ibuprofen for managing postoperative pain, swelling, and trismus after a third molar extraction. There were 90 patients included and randomly allocated, 30 in each of the three study groups. The primary outcome of this trial was postoperative pain, and the secondary outcomes were postoperative swelling and trismus. The celecoxib and diclofenac groups showed better postoperative pain control compared to ibuprofen. Moreover, diclofenac showed better pain control compared to both celecoxib and ibuprofen within the first 72 hours postoperatively: one hour (p=0.005), six hours (p=0.001), 12 hours (p=0.044 ), 24 hours (p=0.017), 48 hours (p=0.006), and 72 hours (p=0.012 ). Regarding the secondary outcomes, there was no statistical difference in the swelling and trismus measurements during the postoperative period between the three study groups. The results of this study showed that celecoxib pain management post-third molar extraction is comparable to that of diclofenac and superior to that of ibuprofen.