The efficacy of anticonvulsants on orofacial pain: a systematic review

Abstract

Objective: Controversy exists about the effectiveness of anticonvulsants for the management of orofacial pain disorders. To ascertain appropriate therapies, a systematic review was conducted of existing randomized controlled trials.

Study design: Trials were identified from PubMed, Cochrane, and Ovid Medline databases from 1962 through March 2010, from references in retrieved reports, and from references in review articles. Eight useful trials were identified for this review. Six studies were randomized placebo-controlled trials and 2 studies were randomized active-controlled. Two independent investigators reviewed these articles by using a 15-item checklist.

Results: Four studies were classified as "high quality." However, heterogeneity of the trials and the small sample sizes precluded the drawing of firm conclusions about the efficacy of the interventions studied on orofacial pain patients.

Conclusions: There is limited to moderate evidence supporting the efficacy of commonly used anticonvulsants for treatment of patients with orofacial pain disorders. More randomized controlled trials are needed on the efficacy of anticonvulsants.