# Importance of pain perception after mucogingival surgery in multiple Miller class III/RT2 gingival recessions: A randomized clinical trial

## TL;DR

This study compares postoperative pain in two surgical techniques for gum recession and finds that one method causes more pain, possibly due to patient risk factors.

## Contribution

The study introduces a comparison of daily postoperative pain in mucogingival surgery considering patient characteristics.

## Key findings

- Patients treated with m-VISTA experienced higher pain intensity and duration compared to CAF.
- Analgesic drug intake was higher in the CAF group, while m-VISTA patients had longer time of analgesic need.
- Pain intensity was associated with the length of the connective tissue graft and drug/alcohol consumption.

## Abstract

Although postoperative pain after mucogingival surgery can modify the patient's daily life, few studies have compared daily postoperative pain in mucogingival surgery considering patient characteristics. The aim of this study was to evaluate postoperative pain in 24 patients with Miller class III/RT2 multiple recessions treated with the modified VISTA (m-VISTA) versus the coronally advanced flap (CAF) with a connective tissue graft (CTG).

Data related to pain intensity (PI), pain duration (PD), analgesic drug intake (AI), and time of analgesic need (TAN) were collected in the “UPV/EHU pain diary”. Other data were also evaluated such as the patient’s central sensitization level, pre-surgical pain, dimensions of CTG, and postoperative incidences were included. A descriptive and analytical statistical analysis was performed.

PI (m-VISTA = 11.19 vs. CAF = 8.10) and PD (m-VISTA = 25.27 min. vs. CAF = 10.34 min.) were higher in the test group, being statistically significant at 2 and 8 hours. TAN (m-VISTA = 63.58 min. vs. CAF = 53.25 min.) was higher in the test group, while AI was two times higher in the control group (m-VISTA = 15 vs. CAF = 38). An association was observed between PI and both the length of the SCTG and drugs/alcohol consumption.

Postoperative pain was greater in the group of patients treated with m-VISTA. However, these patients showed a higher number of risk factors which might have increased or modified their pain symptoms.

Key words:Postoperative pain, pain intensity, visual analog pain scale, gingival recessions, plastic surgery, clinical trial.