A randomised, five-parallel-group, placebo-controlled trial comparing the efficacy and tolerability of analgesic combinations including a novel single-tablet combination of ibuprofen/paracetamol for postoperative dental pain

Combination analgesia is often recommended for the relief of severe pain. This was a double-blind, 5-arm, parallel-group, placebo-controlled, randomised, single-dose study designed to compare the efficacy and tolerability of a novel single-tablet combination of ibuprofen and paracetamol with that of an ibuprofen/codeine combination, and a paracetamol/codeine combination, using the dental impaction pain model. Subjects with at least 3 impacted third molars and experiencing moderate to severe postoperative pain were randomised to receive: 1 or 2 tablets of a single-tablet combination of ibuprofen 200 mg/paracetamol 500 mg; 2 tablets of ibuprofen 200 mg/codeine 12.8 mg; 2 tablets of paracetamol 500 mg/codeine 15 mg; or placebo. Results for the primary endpoint, the sum of the mean scores of pain relief combined with pain intensity differences over 12 hours, demonstrated that 1 and 2 tablets of the single-tablet combination of ibuprofen/paracetamol were statistically significantly more efficacious than 2 tablets of placebo (P < 0.0001) and paracetamol/codeine (P 6 0.0001); furthermore, 2 tablets offered significantly superior pain relief to ibuprofen/codeine (P = 0.0001), and 1 tablet was found noninferior to this combination. Adverse events were uncommon during this study and treatment emergent adverse events were statistically significantly less frequent in the groups taking the ibuprofen/paracetamol combination compared with codeine combinations. In conclusion, 1 or 2 tablets of a single-tablet combination of ibuprofen 200 mg/paracetamol 500 mg provided highly effective analgesia that was comparable with, or superior to, other combination analgesics currently indicated for strong pain. (C) 2011 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of International Association for the Study of Pain.