Post operative pain in endodontics: A systemic review

Post operative pain is an unpleasant situation for both the dentist and the patient. The purpose of this review is to analyze the effect of certain factors like, gender, teeth type, single/multiple visits, and pre-obturation pain, on the incidence of post endodontic pain. Electronic database were searched in a systematic method according to the preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta analysis guidelines, with specified inclusion criteria to identify randomized clinical trials and exclude case reports and expert case series. Thirty eight articles were identified and included in this review. It was found out that the variables that affect post endodontic pain can be classified into gender, type of teeth, relation with pre-obturation pain, single/multiple visits, medications, instrumentation and obturation techniques and vitality of teeth. The level of evidence ranged from I (1) to V (5) for each variable. The current review suggests that the factors that influenced the post endodontic pain were interrelated and directly interdependent. Within the limitations of this review like insufficient amount of level I, it is evident to support strongly, the influence of the different factors on post endodontic pain. There is a greater need for more number of randomized clinical trials to support the effects.