Codeine for Acute Dental Pain and Acute Pain Related to Dental Procedures

Key Message

Two overviews of systematic reviews, 4 systematic reviews, and 9 randomized controlled trials were identified comparing codeine or codeine combination drugs with placebo and/or other drugs in the management of acute dental pain. As compared to placebo, codeine was generally shown to offer a benefit to patients experiencing acute dental pain. When compared to other drugs and/or drug combinations particularly those that were acetaminophen- or ibuprofen-based codeine generally was not found to be as clinically effective for the management of acute dental pain, with the potential exception of tooth sensitivity following dental bleaching, where 1 study reported that acetaminophen plus codeine was statistically significantly superior to ibuprofen or placebo. Increased adverse events were observed with codeine-containing drugs as compared to other drugs and/or placebo. Studies included in this review demonstrated both strengths and limitations, some of which limit the extent to which the findings from these studies were relevant to this report and/or can be generalized.