Effectiveness of laser therapy in patients over 19 years of age with a diagnosis of alveolitis

Abstract

Introduction: alveolitis or alveolar osteitis is the most frequent and painful postoperative complication in dentistry. Its appearance is generally associated with the absence of a blood clot inside the socket after tooth extraction. Objective: to evaluate the effectiveness of laser therapy in the treatment of alveolitis in patients over 19 years of age. Methods: a descriptive, prospective, longitudinal study of cases and controls was carried out in the dentistry service of the “Abel Santamaría Cuadrado” General Teaching Hospital in the period October 2022-September 2023. The universe was made up of 550; the entire of the patients over 19 years of age in this service, the sample consisted of 76 patients, obtained through simple random sampling and according to the exclusion and inclusion criteria. The sample was divided into two groups: Group I (study) made up of patients to whom laser therapy with anti-inflammatory and analgesic parameters was applied for 4 minutes and Group II to which conventional treatment, curettage or alveolar curettage and application from Alvogyl.  Results: there was a predominance of the group of 41-50 years, with 33 patients for 43, 5 %. The risk of the appearance of alveolitis after an extraction increases with age, due to the decrease in the vascular supply of the bone. It was observed that the population studied according to sex showed a predominance of the male sex with 43 for 56, 6 %. The effectiveness of the treatment in curing dry socket is observed where the study group was more effective than the control group with 39 patients for 95, 12 %.  Conclusions: prior preventive care, professional care during extraction and post-extraction treatment will always be vital, elements to consider avoiding alveolitis, regardless of the type that occurs, according to the classification.