Patients' pain experience following oral mucosal biopsy under local anaesthesia

Objective To examine the incidence and severity of postoperative pain and u se of analgesics following biopsy of oral mucosal lesions. Design A patient survey using a self-completed pain diary. Subjects and Methods Seventy-six patients attending an oral medicine clinic for investigation of oral mucosal disease recorded overall and worst pain experiences and analgesic usage over 7 post-operative days following biopsy using visual analogue scales in patient completed diaries. Results One third of patients reported no post-operative pain on any day Mo st patients recorded no pain or mild pain. The percentage experiencing pain dropped from the first day (61%) to the seventh day(21%). Most patients di d not use any analgesics. Analgesic use was not related to the presence of pain. Only a small minority of patients recorded severe pain. Conclusion Biopsy of oral mucosal lesions does not cause undue pain in most patients.