Lidocaine infusion for the treatment of burn pain: A review of recent updates

Abstract

BackgroundBurns are regarded as the most excruciatingly painful injuries. It is well known that treating burn pain is difficult, and researchers have shown that it is frequently not well managed. Consequently, researchers are in need of a novel, pain-relieving method for treating burn injuries. ObjectiveThe goal of this review paper is to give a thorough assessment of the safety of intravenous lidocaine for the treatment of burn pain. MethodsWe searched PubMed, Cochrane central, and google scholar through October 7, 2022. The following research terms were used to identify the potential study: ((((burn pain AND lidocaine) AND (burn pain AND lidocaine intravenous)) AND (burn AND lidocaine intravenous)) AND (pain after burns OR burn pain)) AND (lidocaine OR lidocaine infusion). Additionally, we manually scanned the bibliography of included studies. No restrictions by language or period of publication were used. Main resultLiterature search retrieved 36 unique records. After title/ abstract/ full text screening, we found four articles (two RCTs, one case series, and case report with a total of 70 patients) that provided data on lidocaine infusion for the treatment of burn pain.We found that intravenous lidocaine infusion might be an effective adjunctive therapy for management of burn pain. And no significant adverse side effect was reported. ConclusionIntravenous lidocaine showed an acceptable safety profile and efficacy in the management of burn pain. However, the current evidence is insufficient to confirm maintenance of these results. Therefore, we recommend further randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled trials to address the safety and efficacy of lidocaine infusion on pain management in burn patients. There is a controversy regarding dose of opioid consumption with intravenous lidocaine.