TIAPROFENIC ACID IN THE ACUTE TREATMENT OF POSTSURGICAL PAIN IN DENTISTRY - A COMPARATIVE-STUDY VERSUS NIMESULIDE AND NAPROXEN SODIUM

An open, single-dose, randomized, comparative trial was conducted in 90 patients of both sexes complaining of pain arising after dental surgery. For entry to the trial, pain intensity two to three hours after surgery had to be above 50 mm on the visual analogue scale and severe enough to require administration of an analgesic drug. Patients were divided into three groups of 30 subjects according to a randomization schedule, and these were treated, respectively, with tiaprofenic acid (one 300-mg packet), nimesulide (one 100-mg packet), and naproxen sodium (one 550-mg tablet). The analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities of the drugs were assessed over a six-hour observation period, which started when the patient asked for a drug to relieve his or her pain. The results of the trial show that tiaprofenic acid exerts superior analgesic activity and is faster acting than both nimesulide and naproxen sodium, while at the same time exhibiting excellent general tolerability.