Introduction Alveolar osteitis (AO) is a well-known complication following tooth extraction. Plethora of literature is available regarding its treatment modalities signifying that none of the treatment is as effective as any another treatment. LASER on the other hand, has been used to promote soft tissue healing. Material and method In order to evaluate the effects of laser on healing of AO we undertook a randomized clinical trial. In the trial, sixty patients diagnosed with AO were randomly divided into three groups viz: alvogyl, diode laser and Er:Cr:YSGG laser (erbium chromium yttrium scandium gallium garnet). Results On analyzing the results, diode laser at 1.0 W power settings (energy: 20-25 J/cm 2 ) in non-contact, continuous mode was found to be the most effective for both pain relief and healing improvement. Conclusion The diode laser is an acceptable and effective non-dressing treatment modality for alveolar osteitis, which is the most common painful complication following extraction.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.