Orofacial Pain: pain measurement and clinical implications

Objectives Controversy exists about the effectiveness of anticonvulsants for the management of orofacial pain disorders.In order to ascertain appropriate therapies a systematic review was conducted of existing randomized controlled trials. Material and methodsTrials were identified from PubMed, Cochrane and Ovid MEDLINE databases from 1962 through March 2010, from references in retrieved reports and from references in review articles.Eight useful trials were identified for this review.Six studies were randomized placebo controlled trials and two studies were randomized active controlled.Two independent investigators reviewed these articles using a 15 item checklist. ResultsFour studies were classified as "high quality".However, heterogeneity of the trials and the small sample sizes precluded the drawing of firm conclusions about the efficacy of the interventions studied on orofacial pain patients. ConclusionThere is limited to moderate evidence supporting the efficacy of commonly used anticonvulsants for treatment of patients with orofacial pain disorders.More randomised controlled trials are needed on the efficacy of anticonvulsants.