Abstract
The treatment of dermal injuries is associated with pain in both adult and pediatric populations. We reviewed traditional treatments for controlling the pain of these lesions, such as infiltrated local anesthetics and topical local anesthetics. The objective of this review was to elucidate the efficacy of topical anesthetics in reducing the pain of dermal injuries, as well as the efficacy of topical anesthetics versus other anesthetics, or versus a placebo. Methodology: a systematic review was carried out by searching Medline (PubMED), Scopus, Cinahl, Cochrane, Lilacs, and ENFISPO for randomized clinical trials on the control of pain in dermal lesions through the use of topical anesthetics, versus a placebo or versus another anesthetic. Results: twelve randomized clinical trials with a total of 952 patients were included. Seven studies analyzed the efficacy of topical anesthetics compared to a placebo, and six of them observed statistically significant differences in favor of the experimental group. Five studies analyzed the efficacy of topical anesthetics compared to other anesthetics or sedatives; three of them observed statistically significant differences in favor of the experimental group, and two found no difference between the anesthetics analyzed. Conclusion: topical anesthesia is a useful method for pain control, is safe compared to other traditional methods, and offers a satisfactory form of pain relief in relation to infiltration anesthesia and compared to placebo.
Highlights
The treatment of dermal injuries is associated with pain in both adult and pediatric populations [1], and these lesions can occur in both acute and chronic states [2]
Infiltration and as well as topical anesthetics formulated in different presentation formats: liquid, gel, or patch, are found [2]
A systematic review was carried out on the efficacy of topical anesthetics in dermal injuries, according to the recommendations established for Systematic Reviews and
Summary
The treatment of dermal injuries is associated with pain in both adult and pediatric populations [1], and these lesions can occur in both acute and chronic states [2] In both cases, pain control is vital [3], whether the pain occurs from the wound itself or is derived from the treatment administered. In some cases, these can be avoided, or carried out without pain, by treating the area to be infiltrated using a topical anesthetic [6] These topical anesthetics have been used as a treatment for the reduction of pain in wounds since the second half of the 19th century, with the discovery of cocaine [7]. In addition to reducing pain for the patient, topical anesthetics prevent distortion of the wound edge, 4.0/)
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