Effect of photobiomodulation on pain level during local anesthesia injection: a randomized clinical trial

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) as pre-treatment on pain level during injection in the anterior maxillary region. 56 Patients were randomly divided into 3 groups, Group 1:980 nm diode laser (n = 22) (experimental), Group 2:980 nm diode laser probe placed in vestibule without radiation (placebo) (n = 22), Group3: no pre-treatment before injection (n = 12) (control). Pain level during injection was evaluated by visual analog scale (VAS). The severity of pain in Group 1(experimental) and Group 2 (placebo) was significantly lower than Group 3 (control). Group 1 had a lesser pain level than Group 2, but the difference in pain level between them was not significant. PBMT with 980 nm wavelength decreased pain level during local anesthesia injection without superiority over placebo.

KEYWORDS:

• Photobiomodulation
• pain
• local anesthesia
• diode laser
• laser therapy
• injection

Disclosure statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Role of funding source

None.

Ethical approval

This study has been approved by ethical committee of Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

Informed consent

The informed consent was taken from each patient before the procedure.