To compare and analyze the potency of two topical anesthetic gels in reducing inferior alveolar injection pain in children of 8–12 years: A double-blinded clinical trial

• Main Authors: Dharati Patel, Banibrata Lahiri, Mohamed Abd-Ellatif El-Patal, Abdulfatah Alazmah, Parth Patel, Yousef H Abokhlifa
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2021-01-01
• Series: Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences
• Subjects: benzocaine; inferior alveolar nerve block; lidocaine; topical anesthesia; wong-baker faces pain rating scale
• Online Access: http://www.jpbsonline.org/article.asp?issn=0975-7406;year=2021;volume=13;issue=5;spage=646;epage=650;aulast=

Aim: To compare and analyze the clinical adequacy of two topical anesthetic gels, Precaine (8% lidocaine + 0.8% dibucaine) and Precaine B (20% benzocaine) in children before intraoral local anesthetic injections. Materials and Methods: This clinical study included thirty children who needed an inferior alveolar nerve block. They were divided into three groups: Group A: Precaine topical gel group, Group B: Precaine B topical gel Group, Group C: no anesthetic topical gel group (control group). These two effective topical gels were applied before giving intraoral local anesthesia, and afterward, the child's pain response was surveyed utilizing the Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale. The scores obtained were subjected to statistical analysis. Results: Intergroup comparison showed a significant mean difference between the control group and Precaine group (P > 0.05) as well as Precaine B group (P > 0.05). However, there is no significant difference obtained between Group A and Group B (P < 0.05). Conclusion: It is psychologically and clinically beneficial to apply a topical anesthetic agent before injecting any intraoral anesthesia. In this study, both anesthetic gels showed a nonsignificant difference in reducing inferior alveolar injection pain, but Precaine B shows more promising results than Precaine.