Abstract
Vitamin C has a critical role in pain management because of its antioxidative, neuroprotective,
and anti-nociceptive properties. Oxidative stress caused by surgery increases the
requirement for vitamin C. The aim of this study was to evaluate the change in vitamin
C level and its effect on postoperative pain in patients undergoing orthognathic surgery.
Thirty patients were included in the study. The relationships between the postoperative
plasma vitamin C level, duration of surgery, postoperative analgesic consumption,
and pain scores (visual analogue scale) were analysed. The difference between the
mean pre- and postoperative vitamin C levels was found to be statistically significant
(7.5 ± 2.9 mg/l vs 4.9 ± 2.3 mg/l, respectively; P = 0.001). There was no significant relationship between the duration of surgery and
the vitamin C level decrease (P > 0.05). There was an inverse correlation between the postoperative vitamin C level
and the amount of analgesic requested via patient-controlled analgesia (r = −0.699, P < 0.001). The findings suggest that, in patients who undergo orthognathic surgery,
plasma vitamin C levels decrease significantly (34.6%), and an increase in the duration
of surgery is not associated with any decrease in the vitamin C levels. A low postoperative
plasma vitamin C level was found to be associated with greater postoperative analgesic
consumption. In patients with preoperative plasma vitamin C levels ≤ 42 µmol/l, perioperative
vitamin C administration may be considered for postoperative pain management.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: July 02, 2022
Accepted:
June 15,
2022
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
