This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (Intervention). The objectives are as follows:

To assess the beneficial and harmful effects of ibuprofen compared to paracetamol for pain relief after surgical removal of lower wisdom teeth, at different doses and administered preoperatively or postoperatively.

Primary

• To test the null hypothesis of no difference in the beneficial and harmful effects between ibuprofen and paracetamol for pain relief in patients requiring surgical removal of a lower wisdom tooth or teeth, against the alternative hypothesis of a difference.

Secondary

• To test the null hypothesis of no difference in the beneficial and harmful effects between different doses of ibuprofen and different doses of paracetamol for pain relief in patients requiring surgical removal of a lower wisdom tooth or teeth, against the alternative hypothesis of a difference.

• To test the null hypothesis of no difference in the beneficial and harmful effects between different times of administration of ibuprofen and different times of administration of paracetamol for pain relief in patients requiring surgical removal of a lower wisdom tooth or teeth, against the alternative hypothesis of a difference.