SynthesisLasers in medical science2013
Efficacy of low-level laser therapy in the management of orthodontic pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Lasers in medical science, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 31 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
31 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 70 citations in OpenAlex.
- Umbrella review of low-level light therapy: evidence across clinical conditions.Lasers in medical science · 2026Pooled it
- Effect of Laser Therapy on Postoperative Pain and Endodontic Retreatment: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.International dental journal · 2024Pooled it
- The effectiveness of low-level diode laser therapy on orthodontic pain management: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Lasers in medical science · 2015Pooled it
- Does low level laser therapy relieve the pain caused by the placement of the orthodontic separators?--A meta-analysis.Head & face medicine · 2015Pooled it
- A systematic review and meta-analysis on the efficacy of low-level laser therapy in the management of complication after mandibular third molar surgery.Lasers in medical science · 2015Pooled it
- Low-level laser therapy for orthodontic pain: a systematic review.Lasers in medical science · 2015Pooled it
- Efficacy of low-level laser therapy for accelerating tooth movement during orthodontic treatment: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Lasers in medical science · 2015Pooled it
- Effect of single-dose diode laser photobiomodulation on orthodontic pain following initial archwire placement: a randomized clinical trial.BMC oral health · 2025Trial
- Effect of 970 nm low-level laser therapy on orthodontic tooth movement during Class II intermaxillary elastics treatment: a RCT.Scientific reports · 2021Trial
- Effect of low-level laser therapy on tooth-related pain and somatosensory function evoked by orthodontic treatment.International journal of oral science · 2018Trial
- The effect of low-level laser therapy on tooth movement during canine distalization.Lasers in medical science · 2017Trial
- Evaluation of the use of low-level laser therapy in pain control in orthodontic patients: A randomized split-mouth clinical trial.The Angle orthodontist · 2016Trial
- Effect of single-dose low-level helium-neon laser irradiation on orthodontic pain: a split-mouth single-blind placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial.Progress in orthodontics · 2015Trial
- The effect of diode superpulsed low-level laser therapy on experimental orthodontic pain caused by elastomeric separators: a randomized controlled clinical trial.Lasers in medical science · 2015Trial
- Photobiomodulation in orthodontics: an overview of systematic reviews with meta-regression and evidence map.Odontology · 2026Review
- Protocol for low-level laser therapy (LLLT) to control post-endodontic treatment pain in patients with apical periodontitis: a randomized controlled trial.BMC oral health · 2025Article
- The Effect of Low-Level Laser Therapy to Reduce Pain Caused by Orthodontic Separators: A Randomized, Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled, Split-Mouth Study.Dentistry journal · 2025Article
- Current Applications and Future Directions of Lasers in Endodontics: A Narrative Review.Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Current advances in orthodontic pain.International journal of oral science · 2016Review
- A randomized clinical trial comparing the efficacy of bite wafer and low level laser therapy in reducing pain following initial arch wire placement.Laser therapy · 2016Article
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
This review aimed to identify the efficacy of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) in the management of orthodontic pain. This systematic review and meta-analysis was carried out in accordance with Cochrane Handbook and the PRISMA statement. An extensive literature search for RCTs, quasi-RCTs, and CCTs was performed through CENTRAL, PubMed, Embase, Medline, CNKI, and CBM up to October 2011. Risk of bias assessment was performed via referring to the Cochrane tool for risk of bias assessment. Meta-analysis was implemented using Review Manager 5.1. As a result, four RCTs, two quasi-RCTs, and two CCTs were selected from 152 relevant studies, including 641 patients from six countries. The meta-analysis demonstrated that 24% risk of incidence of pain was reduced by LLLT (RR = 0.76, 95% CI range 0.63-0.92, P = 0.006). In addition, compared to the control group, LLLT brought forward "the most painful day" (MD = -0.42, 95% CI range -0.74- -0.10, P = 0.009). Furthermore, the LLLT group also implied a trend of earlier end of pain compared with the control group (MD = -1.37, 95% CI range -3.37-0.64, P = 0.18) and the pseudo-laser group (MD = -1.04, 95% CI range -4.22-2.15, P = 0.52). However, because of the methodological shortcomings and risk of bias of included trials, LLLT was proved with limited evidence in delaying pain onset and reducing pain intensity. In the future, larger and better-designed RCTs will be required to provide clearer recommendations.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.