Comparison of jaw-opening reflexes evoked by Er:YAG laser versus scalpel incisions in rats.
OBJECTIVE
Anecdotal remarks suggest that incisions in oral soft tissue would be less painful if performed with laser rather than with scalpel, but such an argument remains to be scientifically validated.


METHODS
Twelve rats received graded incisions to lip, gingiva, mucosa, and tongue with either a pulsed Er:YAG laser (65 mJ/pulse at 10 Hz) or a stainless steel scalpel. The amplitude of the jaw-opening reflex, as measured by the digastric muscle electromyogram, was used to quantify the nociceptive response evoked by the surgical incisions.


RESULTS
Except for lip, mean reflex amplitudes evoked by laser were significantly smaller (P < .05) than those evoked by scalpel in all other incision sites.


CONCLUSIONS
Er:YAG laser surgery may be less painful and therefore require less use of anesthesia and sedation than conventional scalpel surgery in oral soft tissue procedures.
Zeredo
Jorge L
JL
Division of Integrative Sensory Physiology, Department of Developmental and Reconstructive Medicine, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan. jorge@net.nagasaki-u.ac.jp
Sasaki
Katia M
KM
Yozgatian
Joseph H
JH
Okada
Yukio
Y
Toda
Kazuo
K
D000818:Animals; D003762:Dental Instruments / Q000009:adverse effects; D004576:Electromyography; D004871:Erbium; D053685:Laser Therapy; D007834:Lasers; D008297:Male; D008334:Mandible / Q000502:physiology*; D009055:Mouth / Q000601:surgery; D009334:Neck Muscles / Q000502:physiology; D019647:Oral Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D010812:Physical Stimulation; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012026:Reflex, Stretch / Q000502:physiology*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013525:Surgical Instruments / Q000009:adverse effects
D004871:Erbium