ABSTRACT Purpose This cohort study evaluated the perception of undergraduate dental students regarding the effectiveness of a practical learning activity involving experimental pain research. Methods Seventy‐six first‐semester students participated in a 40‐min activity consisting of four stages: demonstration, baseline assessment, intervention, and post‐intervention. Pain and unpleasantness intensities were measured using mechanical stimuli applied to the face and forearm, assessed with a 0–100 mm visual analog scale. The intervention involved visual and verbal cues suggesting analgesia on one side and hyperalgesia on the other, followed by a 10‐min application of topical anesthetic cream on both sides. Students completed a questionnaire rating the activity's effectiveness on a 0–10 numeric rating scale and took a theoretical exam. ANOVA, Wilcoxon test, and Spearman correlation were applied to data ( p 0.050). There was a reduction in pain and unpleasantness with the suggestion of analgesia, −0.70 (14.70) and −2.94 (16.23), and an increase in pain and unpleasantness with the suggestion of hyperalgesia, 5.85 (12.85) and 1.70 (14.74) ( p < 0.001). Conclusion We conclude that it is possible to replicate results from experimental pain research in a teaching environment. Thus, incorporating experiments as a teaching method is valuable and effective for pain education. Significance This study presents a novel approach to pain education. It was demonstrated that rigorous research methodologies can be effectively integrated into the educational setting.
Ardestani et al. (Thu,) studied this question.