Advancing Postoperative Pain Management in Oral Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review

• Published in: Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 17; no. 4; p. 542
• Main Authors: Inchingolo, Angelo Michele, Dipalma, Gianna, Inchingolo, Alessio Danilo, Palumbo, Irene, Guglielmo, Mariafrancesca, Morolla, Roberta, Mancini, Antonio, Inchingolo, Francesco
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 01-04-2024; MDPI
• Subjects: Analgesics; Cancer therapies; cancer-related pain; Care and treatment; Chemotherapy; Clinical trials; Complications and side effects; Diagnosis; Fentanyl; head and neck cancer; Mouth cancer; Mucositis; Narcotics; Neck; Oral cancer; oral squamous cell carcinoma; Pain management; Pain, Postoperative; Patients; postoperative analgesia; postoperative pain; Radiation therapy; Surgery; Systematic Review; Tongue; Tumors; Italy; head and neck cancer; postoperative pain; opioid; postoperative analgesia; oral squamous cell carcinoma; oral cancer; cancer-related pain
• ISSN: 1424-8247; 1424-8247
• DOI: 10.3390/ph17040542

The goal of this review is to shed light on the management of orofacial discomfort after a cancer diagnosis in the head and neck region. A search was conducted on PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science to identify studies on postoperative pain control in oral cancer. The review included open-access research, investigations into pain management, randomized clinical trials, retrospective studies, case-control studies, prospective studies, English-written studies, and full-text publications. Exclusion criteria included animal studies; in vitro studies; off-topic studies; reviews, case reports, letters, or comments; and non-English language. Three reviewers independently accessed databases and assigned a quality rating to the chosen articles. The review explores postoperative pain management in oral cancer patients; highlighting persistent opioid use; the efficacy of adjuvant drugs, such as gabapentin; and a multimodal approach. It emphasizes the need for personalized pain management, recognizing individual pain perception and tailoring interventions. Integrating pharmacological and non-pharmacological strategies is crucial for comprehensive pain management. The review also serves as a guide for future research, emphasizing the need for standardized methodologies and diverse participant populations.