Therapeutic Implication of Hyaluronic Acid Gel Following Impacted Mandibular Third Molar Surgery: an Observational Study.

Abstract

Introduction: This study sought to assess the effectiveness of intraoral hyaluronic acid (HA) gel in alleviating postoperative pain, oedema and trismus after mandibular third molar surgery, and its capacity to reduce the need for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

Materials and methods: This split-mouth study included 33 healthy patients aged 18 to 45 years with bilaterally impacted mandibular third molars who came to the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, MES Dental College, Perinthalmanna, India, between November 2023 and March 2025. In the experimental procedure, 0.2% HA gel was applied to the extraction socket, while the control side did not receive any HA gel after surgical extraction. Postoperative evaluations of pain, oedema and trismus were documented on days 3 and 7 for both groups.

Results: The use of HA markedly decreased pain perception during the initial postoperative period. However, trismus and the degree of oedema did not differ statistically significantly between the experimental and control groups.

Conclusion: The intraoral application of HA gel after mandibular third molar surgery demonstrated analgesic effects and reduced the need for NSAID use.