ICS and Lidocaine Compared in Preventing Pediatric Pain

Dentistry Today
Image courtesy of arztsamui at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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Image courtesy of arztsamui at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Many kids are afraid of the dentist, often because of all of those needles. That’s why clinicians should strive to make pediatric visits as pain-free as possible. To help make that happen, one recent study compared the effectiveness of a 3-in-one injection comfort system (ICS) with a 10% lidocaine pump spray in reducing injection pain in children.

The researchers treated 58 children aged 8 to 12 at a university pediatric dental clinic. They used the Children’s Fear Survey Schedule-Dental Subscale to select nonanxious children to participate. Contralateral tooth pairs were treated in 2 separate visits with random use of ICS or lidocaine pump spray.

Pain perception levels were assessed with heart-rate changes, the Modified Behavioral Pain Scale (MBPS), and the Wong-Baker FACES Pain Rating Scale (WBFPRS). At the end of the second visit, the children’s preferences were noted. Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests were performed to compare the results.

The researchers found no significant differences between the 2 groups in the MBPS and WBFPRS scores and mean heart rate changes (P > 0.05). However, 68% of the children preferred the ICS. Still, the researchers concluded that the ICS and 10% lidocaine pump spray presented the same efficacy in reducing injection pain.

The study, “Comparison of Topical 10 Percent Lidocaine and a Local Anesthetic System in Pediatric Dental Patients,” was published in the Journal of Dentistry for Children.

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