Photobiomodulation in Pain Control in Diseases of the Oral Cavity: Overview (Evidence Map) and Its Implementation in Integrative Complementary Medicine

Abstract

Objective: To assess the evidence available and knowledge gaps in photobiomodulation (PBM) for oral facial pain. Background data: Effective identification of a noninvasive resource for oral facial pain such as PBM may mitigate the risks of invasive therapeutic resources. Methods: Nine electronic databases were searched for systematic reviews reporting oral facial pain outcome for PBM. The 3iE (International Initiative for Impact Evaluation) evidence gap map methodology with the tableau was used to graphically display the parameters analyzed in the research. Results: Several wavelengths within the range of infrared were used in 37.6% of the studies, accompanied by the 32.4% in the red range. The quality of the effect was positive in 61.4% of the studies, whereas the impact degree was low, according to the measurement tool used to assess systematic reviews 2 (AMSTAR 2), in 60.2%. Conclusions: Despite the positive potential of PBM in the treatment and control of pain in diseases of the oral cavity, complete information on dosimetry in published studies with PBM is still lacking, making it difficult to reproduce the results found.

Keywords: dentistry integrative; evidence map; evidence-based dentistry; pain; photobiomodulation therapy.