The British journal of oral & maxillofacial surgery
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Br J Oral Maxillofac Surg · Nov 2014
Review Meta Analysis Comparative StudyAnalgesic efficacy and safety of single-dose tramadol and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in operations on the third molars: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate published randomised, double-blind, clinical trials to compare the analgesic efficacy and safety of tramadol with that of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) in operations on the third molars. We identified eligible reports from searches of PubMed, MedLine, the Cochrane Library, Oxford Pain Relief database, Imbiomed, and Google Scholar. The full text of studies that met our minimum requirements were evaluated using inclusion and exclusion criteria with the Oxford Quality Scale. ⋯ Probabilities of less than 0.05 were accepted as significant. The results showed that tramadol had less analgesic efficacy and an increased risk of adverse effects compared with NSAID. In conclusion, a single dose of tramadol was not as effective or as safe as NSAID for the relief of pain after operations on the third molars.
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Br J Oral Maxillofac Surg · Nov 2014
Changes of perfusion of microvascular free flaps in the head and neck: a prospective clinical study.
Reconstruction with a free flap is routine in head and neck surgery. However, reliable assessment of perfusion can be difficult, so we prospectively evaluated it in 4 types of microvascular free flaps in the oral cavity (n=196) and assessed differences in blood flow by non-invasive monitoring with a laser Doppler flowmetry unit. We measured oxygen saturation, haemoglobin concentration, and velocity on the surface of the flap preoperatively at the donor site, and on the flap on the first, second, and seventh postoperative days, and after 4 weeks in 186/196 patients, mean (SD) age of 60 (13) years. ⋯ There were significant differences in haemoglobin concentrations between the fibular and soleus perforator flaps, and between the anterolateral thigh and soleus perforator flaps (p=0.002 each). Free flaps are unique in the way that perfusion develops after microvascular anastomoses. Knowledge of how each flap is perfused may indicate different patterns of healing that could potentially influence long term rehabilitation and detection of future deficits in perfusion.