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Blowing away shot pain: a technique for pain management during immunization
G M French1, E C Painter, D L Coury
1Department of Pediatrics, Ohio State University, College of Medicine, Children's Hospital, Columbus 43205.
Objective:
To study the effect of an active distraction technique on pain in preschool children receiving diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus immunization.
Design:
Randomized, unblinded controlled study.
Setting:
Columbus Public Health Department Immunization Clinics.
Participants:
One hundred forty-nine 4- to 7-year-old children.
Intervention:
Children were taught to blow out air repeatedly during the injection, as if they were blowing bubbles.
Results:
Children who were taught to blow out air during their shots had significantly fewer pain behaviors (P < .04) and demonstrated a trend toward lower subjectively reported pain (P = .06). There was no significant difference in the nurse or parent visual analog scale scores.
Conclusions:
A simple distraction technique can be effective in helping children cope with the pain of immunization. The use of such a technique to relieve the pain and distress associated with even a brief painful procedure should be encouraged.
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