Comparative study in patients with symptomatic internal derangements of the temporomandibular joint: analgesic outcomes of arthrocentesis with or without intra-articular morphine and tramadol

Our aim was to find out whether pain was better controlled if morphine or tramadol was injected intra-articularly after arthrocentesis with Ringer's lactate in patients with painful temporomandibular joints (TMJ). This placebo-controlled, double-blind study involved 30 patients who had not responded to conservative treatment and who were divided randomly into 3 groups of 10 patients each. All patients had arthrocentesis, and the drugs were given as intra-articular injections immediately after the procedure. One group was give 5% Ringer's lactate 1 ml, the second morphine 1 mg, and the third tramadol 50 mg. Visual analogue scales (VAS) for pain were recorded at maximum mouth opening and at rest before intra-articular injection and after 15 and 30 min; at 1, 2, 3, 8, 12, 24, 36 and 48 h; and at 1, 3, and 6 monthly follow-up. The mean (SD) VAS decreased from 6.90 (1.45) to 2.6 (2.5) in the control group, from 7.30 (1.64) to 1.20 (0.79) in the morphine group (p = 0.005), and from 7.10 (1.73) to 1.50 (1.78) in the tramadol group (p = 0.005). We conclude that morphine given by intra-articular injection after arthrocentesis gives a significant, sustained (6 months) improvement in pain relief compared with simple arthrocentesis alone. The effect was similar with tramadol except that it was shorter lived.