Comparative evaluation of the efficacy of topical anesthetics in reducing pain during administration of injectable local anesthesia in children

Abstract

Introduction: Pain control is an integral part of modern dentistry. Needle injection of local anesthetic which is the commonest modality of pain control itself proves to be painful for the child. Hence, it is important for the pediatric dentists to resort to a pain free method of administering local anesthesia for a patient. Topical anesthetics have proven to reduce the pain experience during administration of local anesthetic injection. The aim of this study is to evaluate and compare the efficacy of two topical anesthetic agents-EMLA 5% cream (Eutectic mixture of local anesthetics-Lignocaine 2.5% and prilocaine 2.5%) and Benzocaine 20% gel in reducing the pain during administration of local anesthetic injection in children. Materials and methods: EMLA 5% cream and Benzocaine 20% gel were used in the study. Children from mixed dentition age group between 6 and 9 years of age were selected. The two selected topical anesthetics were applied on buccal mucosa at two different appointments in a given child, following which the local anesthetic was administered on the test site. The pain responses of the child were evaluated using the Wong Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale. The results were then statistically analyzed using Mann-Whitney U-test. Results: EMLA 5% cream was three times highly effective in pain reduction than Benzocaine 20% gel. Conclusion: EMLA 5% cream is comparatively better than benzocaine 20% gel with regards to pain reduction during the administration of local anesthetic injection in children.