Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39789114›Full record

SynthesisScientific reports2025

Systematic review and meta-analysis of pain management after tonsillectomy.

Katharina Geißler, Daniel Scham, Winfried Meißner, Peter Schlattmann, Orlando Guntinas-Lichius

Abstract readSystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Scientific reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. [Clinical practice guideline for perioperative pain management in pediatric low-temperature plasma tonsillectomy].Lin chuang er bi yan hou tou jing wai ke za zhi = Journal of clinical otorhinolaryngology head and neck surgery · 2026
    Guideline
  2. The role of postoperative sucralfate in adults following tonsillectomy and sleep surgery: a systematic review.European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery · 2025
    Pooled it
  3. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Katharina GeißlerDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology, Jena University Hospital, Am Klinikum 1, 07747, Jena, Germany. katharina.geissler@med.uni-jena.de.
Daniel SchamDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology, Jena University Hospital, Am Klinikum 1, 07747, Jena, Germany.
Winfried MeißnerDepartment of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany.
Peter SchlattmannInstitute of Medical Statistics, Informatics and Data Science, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany.
Orlando Guntinas-LichiusDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology, Jena University Hospital, Am Klinikum 1, 07747, Jena, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Tonsillectomy is one of the most common operations. Tonsillectomy is also one of the most painful surgical procedures. However, there is still no satisfactory standard for postoperative pain management. Four databases (Cochrane Library, Ovid Technologies, PubMed, Web of Science) were searched for the period from 1908 to 2019. The systematic literature review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Data were pooled using random-effects and fixed-effects models. Randomized controlled trials, reviews and meta-analyses were included. Primary outcomes were quantitative pain intensity in the first 24 h after tonsillectomy and on days 1, 3, and 7 postoperatively. The search yielded 1594 publications, of which 111 publications with 7566 patients, both children and adults, could be included. Intraoperative medication with intravenous dexamethasone significantly reduced pain (mean difference [MD] -0.42; 95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.61- -0.24). Among the local anesthetics, only the preoperative injection of levobupivacaine into the tonsillar compartment was able to provide sufficient pain reduction up to three days after tonsillectomy (MD: -1.92; 95% CI: -2.73 - -1.11). Preoperative or intraoperative administration of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) significantly reduced pain (MD: -0.75; 95% CI: -0.87- -0.63). Steroids and NSAIDs are an important part of pain management after tonsillectomy.

Indexed as

Pain ManagementPostoperative PainTonsillectomyAdultAnesthetics, LocalChildDexamethasoneHumansAnesthetics, LocalDexamethasoneClinical trialMeta-analysisNSAIDPain therapyTonsillectomy

Identifiers

PMID39789114
PMCPMC11718165

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.