Comparative effectiveness of ice packs versus topical lidocaine-prilocaine mixture for pain control in laser hair removal of the axilla: A rater-blinded randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Laser hair removal is associated with moderate acute pain. To compare effectiveness of ice pack to topical lidocaine-prilocaine for pain reduction during axillary laser hair removal. Participants were randomly assigned to receive topical anesthetic to one axilla and ice packs to the other before each of three, monthly 810-nm diode laser sessions. The primary endpoint was participant-reported pain on the visual analog scale (VAS) immediately following and 5 minutes after laser. Post-treatment erythema, overall edema, and perifollicular edema were assessed by two blinded photoraters. Skin temperatures, patient preferences, and adverse events were recorded. Eighty-eight of 90 (98%) planned laser treatments were delivered, and randomized. Participants reported higher VAS scores immediately after laser with lidocaine-prilocaine compared to ice (p=0.03). Five minutes after, participants reported higher VAS scores with ice (p=0.03). After 53 of the 88 treatments (60.2%), participants reported preferring ice (p=0.055). No serious adverse events were reported. All participants were Caucasian or Asian with Fitzpatrick skin type I-III and coarse dark axillary hair, which may limit generalizability. While pain control with ice and topical anesthesia is associated with time after treatment, the two modalities do not differ in terms of degree of pain reduction associated with axillary laser hair removal.