Posttonsillectomy pain relief and epithelialization with honey

Authors: PATHMA LETCHUMANAN, RAMAN RAJAGOPALAN, MOHD YUSOFF KAMARUDDIN

Abstract: To assess the ability of honey to reduce pain and promote epithelialization on posttonsillectomy wounds. Materials and methods: A prospective randomized control study was conducted on 60 patients undergoing tonsillectomy from November 2007 to September 2008 at University Malaya Medical Centre. The test group received honey application on the tonsillar bed and the control group had placebo applied. The pain relief was analyzed along with the amount of analgesia consumed, and wound epithelialization was monitored and recorded accordingly. Results: Twenty-one patients from each group were finally analyzed after excluding patients that did not complete the study or fit the criteria. Pain relief and wound epithelialization were observed to be better in the honey-treated group compared to the placebo group. However, the difference was not statistically significant. Conclusion: This study shows that the rate of pain relief and early return to work and school were faster in both groups when compared to the current practice. However, there was no statistical significance seen in either the honey or placebo groups in terms of pain relief and wound epithelization, which could be due to improper choice of placebo. The potential use of honey in wound healing and pain relief should be further explored with more studies.

Keywords: Honey, posttonsillectomy, pain relief, wound epithelialization

Full Text: PDF