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Lidocaine Infusions for Pain Management in Pediatrics
Elizabeth A Hall1, Hannah E Sauer2, Margaret S Davis3
1Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Translational Science, University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Pharmacy, Memphis, TN, USA. liz.hall@uthsc.edu.
Insights
Continuous intravenous lidocaine infusions offer a valuable option for managing refractory pain in children when standard treatments fail or are contraindicated. This review evaluates its use in pediatric pain management.
Area of Science:
- Anesthesiology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Lidocaine is a widely recognized amino amide local anesthetic.
- Systemic intravenous lidocaine administration is utilized for various acute and chronic pain conditions.
- It is considered for refractory pain unresponsive to conventional therapies or when standard treatments are limited by side effects or contraindications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and evaluate published data on the use of continuous lidocaine infusions for pain management.
- To assess the efficacy and safety of this treatment modality in the pediatric population.
Main Methods:
- Systematic review of published literature.
- Evaluation of studies reporting the use of continuous lidocaine infusions in pediatric patients for pain management.
Main Results:
- Continuous lidocaine infusions have demonstrated utility in managing diverse pain types, including postoperative, neuropathic, and centrally mediated pain.
- This method can be employed as a standalone intervention or in a series of infusions.
- The review focuses on data specific to the pediatric population.
Conclusions:
- Continuous intravenous lidocaine infusions represent a viable therapeutic strategy for pediatric pain management, particularly in refractory cases.
- Further evaluation of its role in specific pediatric pain syndromes is warranted.
Abstract:
Lidocaine is an amino amide with a well-established role as a local anesthetic agent. Systemic intravenous administration expands its clinical use to include acute and chronic pain circumstances, such as postoperative pain, neuropathic pain, postherpetic neuralgia, hyperalgesia, visceral pain, and centrally mediated pain. For refractory pain that has not responded to conventional therapy or if further escalation of treatment is prevented by contraindications or side effects to standard therapies, a continuous infusion of lidocaine may be considered as a single intervention or as a sequence of infusions. Here, we review and evaluate published data reflecting the use of lidocaine continuous infusions for pain management in the pediatric population.
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