Pilot clinical study of the effectiveness of a post-dental extraction gel of 1% hyaluronic acid and 0.20% Chlorhexidine

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the present study is to compare the efficacy, in terms of oral healing and post-surgical pain, in a group of patients treated with an oral application of 1% hyaluronic acid (HA) together with 0.20% chlorhexidine (CHX), compared to patients treated with placebo and a third group treated with HA 0.20%, CHX 0.20% + Panthenol. METHOD: The study design is an analytical, experimental, randomized, blind, prospective longitudinal study. A sample of 45 patients was randomized and divided into 3 comparison groups of 15, with each group receiving a different composition gel after a dental extraction. The control group received a gel of 0.20% hyaluronic acid, 0.20% chlorhexidine; the placebo group was applied a gel of similar consistency to the previous but without active ingredients; and the experimental group received a gel with 1% hyaluronic acid and 0.20% chlorhexidine. Efficacy variables were measured at 24 hours, 48 hours, 72 hours and 7 days. RESULTS: For post-operative pain, we found no statistically significant differences in any of the groups analysed. For healing, the group receiving 1% hyaluronic acid and 0.20% chlorhexidine had the best results from a statistical point of view in the first 24-48 hours compared to the other two groups. CONCLUSIONS: The results obtained seemed to show that topical applications of 1% hyaluronic acid together with 0.20% chlorhexidine have a positive influence on the healing of soft tissue after dental extraction; however, it does not seem to have any beneficial effects in terms of post-operative oral pain