Treatment of postoperative pain in oral and maxillofacial surgery.

We questioned 75 patients after inpatient oral and maxillofacial operations to find out how satisfied they were with the extent to which their pain had been controlled. Seventy (93%) had had postoperative pain. In 33 (47%), it was moderate and in 24 (34%), severe. Analgesic drugs were not given immediately to 6 of the 24 patients who requested them. Seventeen (24%) reported that the pain was worse than they had expected, but 74 of the 75 patients were satisfied with the pain control they received. We conclude that patients' expectations of pain control are low and that questions about satisfaction should not be used in isolation. Copyright 2000 The British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons.