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Use of EMLA cream with vasectomy
1Department of Urology, Western Washington Medical Group, Everett, Washington 98203, USA.
Objectives:
To determine whether the application of a eutectic mixture of anesthetic cream (EMLA cream) can decrease the pain of lidocaine injection during vasectomy.
Methods:
A double-blind, prospective study was performed in which each patient acted as his own control. One hour before a double-incision vasectomy, EMLA cream was applied to one side of the scrotum and a white lanolin hand cream to the other side. A double-incision vasectomy was performed, and each patient was asked to rate the pain associated with each side of the procedure.
Results:
Eighty-nine patients agreed to the study; 61 patients thought the EMLA cream decreased the pain of the vasectomy, 16 preferred the lanolin hand cream, and 3 said there was no difference. These results were significant at the 0.0001 level using the Student t test.
Conclusions:
EMLA cream significantly decreases the pain associated with lidocaine injections given as local anesthesia for vasectomy.