Objective: To compare postoperative tonsillectomy pain between 3 commonly used surgical devices: the Harmonic Ultrasonic Scalpel (Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Cincinnati, OH), the Coblator (ArthroCare Corp, Sunnyvale, CA), and electrocautery.
Study design and setting: A prospective, randomized trial. One hundred thirty-four patients were randomly assigned to receive a tonsillectomy with 1 of 3 surgical devices. All patients were asked to fill out a postoperative diary.
Results: Statistically significant differences in pain scores were revealed between the Coblator and electrocautery (P = 0.02) and between the Coblator and the Ultrasonic Scalpel (P = 0.003), with the Coblator having lower pain scores. Electrocautery and the Ultrasonic Scalpel did not differ significantly from each other. The Coblation method showed a strong trend toward quicker return to normal diet.
Conclusion: Patients undergoing tonsillectomy with the Coblator device reported less pain over a 10-day period than patients undergoing tonsillectomy with electrocautery or the Ultrasonic Scalpel. Pain after tonsillectomy remains a major issue for our patients. The choice of surgical instrument appears to be one way to reduce this pain.
Ebm rating: A-1b.