The effect of honey on post-tonsillectomy pain relief: a randomized clinical trial

OBJECTIVE: The study aimed to evaluate the effects of honey on the incidence of post-operative pain in patients undergoing tonsillectomy. METHODS: This study is a double-blind and randomized controlled trial design. Twenty-four adult male patients underwent tonsillectomy surgery and were randomized assigned into three groups consist of honey group, placebo group, and control group. All subjects were given standard analgesia and antibiotics, also honey for the honey group and placebo for the placebo group, and only standard post-operative regimens for the control group. This study used silk-cotton tree or kapok tree honey (Ceiba pentandra). Honey was used by gargling every six hours for ten days. Likewise, the same method was applied in the placebo group. Pain scale was assessed for ten days using the Visual Analogue Scale questionnaire, and the frequency of analgesic drugs was recorded on days 1, 2, 4, 7, and 10. RESULT: Honey group showed significantly higher pain reduction when compared to placebo and control groups, with a significant reduction in the pain scale on day 1, 2, 4, 7 and 10 (p = 0.034; p = 0.003; p < 0.001; p = 0.001; p = 0.001) gradually; Significant differences were also observed in analgesic use, especially on day 2, 4 and 7 (p = 0.028; p = 0.001; p = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: Administration of Kapok tree honey (C. pentandra) after tonsillectomy might reduce post-operative pain and reduce the need for analgesia. Therefore, honey can be considered a complementary medicine and can be administered routinely as adjunctive therapy for post-operative patients.