The interrelation of postoperative complaints after removal of the mandibular third molar.

Quantitative data on pain, trismus, and swelling after removal of a mandibular third molar are presented. The population of 932 patients included both extractions and surgical removals. Frequency distributions of trismus and pain are given. For all complaints the behavior of the average value as a function of time is presented and these functions are compared with each other. For all values measured on the 3rd and 4th posttreatment days, correlation and regression coefficients for the effects were calculated. It is concluded that there exists a rather strong, but time-dependent, interrelationship between the complaints.