Comparison of etodolac, zomepirac, and placebo for relief of pain after oral surgery.

A double-blind, randomized study of 137 patients compared the effectiveness of single doses of etodolac, 200 and 400 mg, zomepirac, 100 mg, and placebo in relieving moderate to severe pain following third molar extractions. Throughout the 12-hour evaluation period, doses of both etodolac and zomepirac were significantly superior to placebo for total analgesic effect, as measured by the sum of pain intensity difference (SPID) and sum of pain relief (TOTPAR) scores. However, there were no significant differences among the active drugs. It was concluded that etodolac, 200 and 400 mg, provides analgesic efficacy comparable to that of zomepirac, 100 mg, and superior to that of placebo.