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Pain after vaginal delivery, whether caused by episiotomy or perineal laceration, often is treated with topical lidocaine. In this randomized, double-blind trial, researchers evaluated pain relief from lidocaine ointment in women who experienced first-, second-, third-, or fourth-degree lacerations or episiotomy during vaginal delivery. Two hundred patients were given 20-g jars of either lidocaine or placebo ointment; each patient was instructed to apply the ointment to the perineum as needed (up to every 4 hours).
The jars were weighed to determine the amount of ointment used; pain relief was measured by the amount of ointment used and by the total number of analgesic pills taken by the patients. The women also filled out pain questionnaire…