Stability of Lidocaine Solutions Following Sodium Bicarbonate Alkalinization

Abstract

(Reg Anesth Pain Med 2022;47:773–774) It is known that the effectiveness of local anesthesia can be increased by alkalinization using sodium bicarbonate by increasing the fraction of the drug that is undissociated. There is a research gap, however, in examining the degree of alkalinization in different concentrations of lidocaine, its pharmacological stability, and bacterial contamination. This study aimed to fill that gap by examining changes in the amount of unaltered lidocaine according to pH in different concentrations, and by assessing its stability and the incidence of bacterial contamination during preparation.