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EMLA cream reduces the pain of venepuncture in children
C M Cooper1, S P Gerrish, M Hardwick
1Department of Anaesthesia, Sheffield Children's Hospital, United Kingdom.
Insights
EMLA cream significantly reduces venepuncture pain and technical difficulty in children. This study confirms its effectiveness for paediatric anaesthesia induction using 25-gauge needles.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Anesthesiology
- Pain Management
Background:
- Venepuncture is a common procedure in pediatric anesthesia.
- Pain and technical difficulty during venepuncture can negatively impact patient experience and procedure success.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy of Eutectic Mixture of Local Anesthetics (EMLA) cream in mitigating venepuncture pain.
- To assess the impact of EMLA on the technical ease of venepuncture in pediatric patients.
Main Methods:
- A double-blind clinical trial was conducted involving 40 children aged 3-13 years.
- Four distinct pain assessment methods were employed.
- Technical difficulty of venepuncture was also evaluated.
Main Results:
- EMLA cream demonstrated a significant reduction in perceived pain during venepuncture.
- The application of EMLA cream also led to a significant improvement in the technical ease of performing venepuncture.
- These benefits were observed in pediatric patients undergoing anesthesia induction with 25-gauge needles.
Conclusions:
- EMLA cream is an effective analgesic and anesthetic agent for pediatric venepuncture.
- It improves patient comfort and procedural efficiency in pediatric anesthesia.
- EMLA cream is recommended for reducing pain and difficulty in pediatric venepuncture.
Abstract:
EMLA cream (eutectic mixture of local anaesthetics) was tested in a double-blind clinical trial to examine its effect on the pain of venepuncture at induction of anaesthesia in 40 children (aged 3-13 yrs). Four pain-assessment methods were used and an assessment of the technical ease of venepuncture was made. EMLA was found to reduce significantly the pain and technical difficulty of venepuncture. This study confirms that EMLA is an effective method of reducing the pain and technical difficulty of paediatric venepuncture using 25-gauge needles for induction of anaesthesia in children.