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Published on: January 14, 2009

Contribution of a heating element to topical anesthesia patch efficacy prior to vascular access: results from two

Salman Masud1, Richard D Wasnich, Jon L Ruckle

  • 1Shriners Hospitals for Children, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84103-4399, USA. smasud@shrinenet.org

Journal of Pain and Symptom Management
|August 4, 2010
PubMed

Insights

A heated topical anesthetic patch significantly reduced pain during IV procedures compared to an unheated version. This innovation offers improved pain management for superficial procedures, especially in pediatric patients.

Area of Science:

  • Anesthesiology
  • Dermatology
  • Pain Management

Background:

  • Pain during superficial procedures like IV access is a significant concern, particularly for pediatric patients.
  • Effective pain prevention strategies are crucial for improving patient experience and procedural success.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate a novel topical anesthetic patch combining lidocaine and tetracaine with a heating element.
  • To assess the impact of controlled heat on the efficacy of the lidocaine/tetracaine patch for pain reduction during IV cannulation.

Main Methods:

  • A pilot study randomized subjects to heated vs. unheated patches, varying application times and catheter sizes.
  • A definitive double-blind study randomized subjects to heated or unheated patches (20-minute application) before IV cannulation.
  • Pain intensity was measured using a visual analog scale (VAS) as the primary efficacy endpoint.

Main Results:

  • The heated patch group reported significantly lower mean pain intensity scores (14.7 mm) compared to the unheated group (23.5 mm) in the pilot study (P=0.04).
  • In the definitive study, mean pain scores were significantly lower for the heated patch group (14.2 mm) versus the unheated group (20.5 mm) (P=0.006).
  • Catheter size showed a trend towards significance in pain reduction in the pilot study.

Conclusions:

  • Heated lidocaine/tetracaine patches provide superior pain relief compared to unheated patches for IV procedures.
  • The heated patch was well-tolerated with minimal adverse effects.
  • Controlled heat enhances the efficacy of topical local anesthetics for superficial pain management.
Abstract

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