Abstract :
Aim: The objective was to assess the influence of various pain control methods on patients’ perception of pain during debonding.Settings and Design: A cross-sectional comparative study was carried out on 60 subjects (n = 60), comprising 46 females and 14 males, from our institution who were in the finishing stage and ready to be debonded. The participants were randomly divided into three groups: Finger Pressure (FP), Elastomeric Wafer (EW) and Stress Relief (SR).Materials and Methods: For every tooth, pain perception was documented with the help of a 100 mm Visual Analog Scale (VAS). Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS) was further employed to assess the general cognitive-emotional attitude of patients toward pain. To maintain uniformity, a curved debonding plier was used for all procedures with the same operator and armamentarium across subjects.Statistical Analysis Used: Inter and intra-group differences in pain scores were analyzed using the Kruskal–Wallis test. To evaluate correlations between VAS scores and the various pain point control methods, linear regression analysis was used.Results: Inter-group analysis showed that FP group reported the lowest total pain scores (P = 0.043). Intra-group analysis indicated that significantly higher pain scores were observed in the mandibular anterior region across all three groups (P = 0.02). A moderate correlation was identified between pain control approaches and VAS scores.Conclusions: The FP technique proved to be an effective strategy for reducing pain during debonding. Furthermore, anteriors when compared to posteriors in both arches were found to be more pain sensitive
Keyword :
Finger Pressure, Elastomeric Wafer, Stress Relief, Pain control, Orthodontic debonding