Managing pain is a daily duty for most dental professionals, with analgesic medications used frequently as an adjunct to dental interventions. Although ibuprofen, paracetamol and codeine are the most commonly utilised medicines, a range of other medicines are available. However it is not so clear how to choose between these medicines, their benefits and risks, when to use combinations or what precautions to heed regarding co-morbid conditions and interactions with concomitant medications. Other clinical issues include how to best manage acute pain in the very young, the very old, in pregnancy and breastfeeding. How to manage acute dental pain in patients who are already on medicines for chronic pain will also be discussed.

This seminar will cover all the issues of using medicines for pain management you wish they’d taught you at university. There will be ample time for discussion including case examples and challenges faced in clinical practice.

Topics include

• Current concepts in pain management
• Simple analgesics – pros and cons, place in therapy
• NSAIDs & COX-2 inhibitors – risks and benefits, place in therapy
• Opiates- risks and benefits, place in tx, equianalgesic and ceiling doses, 
• Tramadol and tapentadol- what are they, where do they fit in
• Combination analgesia- paracetamol + ibuprofen and more!
• Adjuvant medicines – pregabalin, clonidine, turmeric, valproate
• Specific pain management issues in children, elderly, pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Learning Objectives

At the end of this seminar, attendees will be able to

• Understand current concepts in pain management and how they influence medication use
• Know how to approach pharmacotherapy using WHO analgesic ladder and other pain management tools
• Explain risks and benefits of commonly used medicines including NSAIDS, COX-2 inhibitors, and opiate analgesics. 
• Consider safety issues associated with use of NSAIDs and opiates in pregnancy, lactation, children and elderly
• Issues of hyperalgesia and catastrophisation and their relevance