Objectives: Despite advances in maxillofacial surgery, impaired bone healing remains a concern for surgical teams. Many studies have evaluated the effects of sildenafil and pentoxifylline on bone healing. However, their effects on healing of bone fractures have not been well investigated. This study aimed to assess the effects of the phosphodiesterase inhibitors sildenafil and pentoxifylline on healing of mandibular fractures in rats. Materials and Methods: A total of 60 rats were randomly divided into six groups of 10. Mandibular fracture was induced in all rats. After the surgical procedure, group C1 received saline, group S1 received 10 mg/kg sildenafil and group P1 received 50 mg/kg pentoxifylline. The rats were sacrificed after 1 week. Groups C4, S4, and P4 received pharmaceutical therapy as in groups C1, S1, and P1 but were sacrificed after 4 weeks. The samples then underwent histological analysis. Results: The mean rate of bone healing of mandibular fractures in groups S1 and P1 was significantly higher than in group C1 at 1 week (P<0.001). The mean rate of bone healing of mandibular fractures in group P1 was higher than in group S1 at 1 week (P=0.04). The mean rate of bone healing of mandibular fractures in groups S4 (P=0.001) and P4 (P=0.004) was significantly higher than in group C4 at 4 weeks, but no significant difference was noted in the rate of healing between groups P4 and S4 (P=0.53). Conclusion: Sildenafil and pentoxifylline can be used as adjuncts to enhance bone healing in rats.

Background and Aim: This study aimed to compare the level of pain, wound healing, facial edema, and surgeon's comfort in surgical extraction of impacted third molars using surgical scalpel versus radiofrequency (RF) incision. Materials and Methods: IThis split-mouth clinical trial evaluated 41 patients with bilateral impacted third molars in one jaw with the same Pederson difficulty index (between 5 and 7, moderate difficulty). The surgical incision was made using a surgical scalpel on one random side and an RF device on the contralateral side. The level of pain was measured using a numerical rating scale (NRS) 7 days postoperatively. The wound healing was evaluated using the wound evaluation scale (WES) 4 weeks postoperatively. Facial edema was quantified using a tape measure 7 days postoperatively. Surgeon's comfort was assessed by asking the surgeons regarding the level of easiness of the procedure. The pain score, wound healing score, facial edema, and surgeon's comfort in surgical extraction of impacted third molars were compared between the two sides using SPSS 22 via paired t-test and McNemar's test. Result: The surgeon's comfort was significantly higher in the use of a surgical scalpel (P<0.001). The difference in pain score (P=0.95), wound healing (P=0.32), and facial edema (P>0.05) was not significant between the two groups. Conclusion:The results of this study showed no significant difference in surgical extraction of impacted third molars using a surgical scalpel or an RF device regarding the level of pain, wound healing, or facial edema.

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Background and Aim:Despite the advances in maxillofacial surgery, impaired bone healing remains a concern for surgical teams. Effects of sildenafil and pentoxifylline on healing of bone fractures have not been well investigated. This study aimed to assess the effects of sildenafil and pentoxifylline phosphodiesterase inhibitors on healing of mandibular fractures in rats. Materials and Methods: In this animal study, 48 Wistar rats were randomly divided into six groups (n=8). Mandibular fracture was induced in all rats. After the surgical procedure, C2 group (control, 2 weeks) received saline, S2 group (sildenafil, 2 weeks) received 10 mg/kg sildenafil, and P2 group (pentoxifylline, 2 weeks) received 50 mg/ kg pentoxifylline. The rats were sacrificed after 2 weeks. C6 (control, 6 weeks), S6 (sildenafil, 6 weeks), and P6 (pentoxifylline, 6 weeks) groups received pharmaceutical therapy as in C2, S2, and P2 but were sacrificed after 6 weeks. The samples then underwent histological analysis. Data were analyzed using SPSS 22 via one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey's post-hoc test. Results: The mean rate of healing of mandibular fractures in S2 and P2 was significantly higher than that in C2 after 2 weeks (P<0.001). The mean rate of healing of fractures in P2 was higher than that in S2 after 2 weeks (P=0.04). The mean rate of healing of fractures in S6 (P=0.001) and P6 (P=0.004) was significantly higher than that in C6 after 6 weeks but no significant difference was noted between P6 and S6 in this respect (P=0.53). Conclusion:Sildenafil and pentoxifylline can be used as adjuncts to enhance bone healing.