Clinical features
The patient has expressed fear and discomfort with the anesthetic
procedure since he was a child. In their own words, they stated, ”I
would prefer to feel pain during cleaning and restoration than to take
anesthesia.”
It used a carpule with a backflow prevention mechanism, two long
needles, two tubes of Mepivacaine 2% with epinephrine 1:100,000, a
low-power laser device (MMOpticsTM), and protective
eyewear. (Figure 2-A).
To eliminate any potential placebo effect, the patient was blind to the
procedures. A website https://www.sealedenvelope.com was employed
to determine the initial treatment on the right side. Therefore, the
right side was laser sham, while the left side was effective laser.
Figure 2- A) Materials used; B) Positioning of the laser; C) Puncture
site