Edema and Trismus Assessment After Applying Kinesiotape With the Web Strip Technique Compared With Cryotherapy: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Extraction of impacted third molars is one of the most common oral surgeries performed in the dental clinic, which is often accompanied by many complications such as edema and trismus. Many methods have been used to alleviate these complications, such as drugs or physical therapy. Kinesiotape (KT) has recently spread as a popular physical method for eliminating complications after surgical extraction of lower third molars after its long-term use in sports medicine and injuries of the musculoskeletal system. The current study aimed to study the effect of using KT (Kinesio Holding Corporation, Albuquerque, NM, USA) on both edema and trismus after impacted third molar extraction.

METHODOLOGY

This study was designed as a randomized controlled clinical trial using the split-mouth technique and included 25 patients with radiographically symmetrical lower third molars from patients. All surgical extractions were performed by a single surgeon under sterile conditions according to the standard surgical protocol after that one group applied KT and the other group applied cryotherapy. Edema and trismus were measured in the first five days. Data was collected and analyzed by SPSS software (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA).

RESULTS

The mean change in the total linear facial measurements in the experimental group (Kinesio Group) was 12.32 mm three days after surgery, and then this value decreased to 6.80 mm, while the average increase in the control group (Cryo Group) was 17.00 mm after three days, then the value decreased to 9.68 mm five days after surgery. Regarding the changes in the amount of maximum mouth opening after surgery, the results were similar between the Kinesio Group and the Cryo Group, as there were no significant differences between the two groups (P<0.05).

CONCLUSION

This study concluded that KT was superior to cryotherapy when studying edema. The current study also concluded that the mouth opening was similar between the two study groups.