Lidocaine, Dripped on the Skin, Attenuates Procedural Pain

We commonly use lidocaine to numb the skin and soft tissue prior to performing bedside procedures, but its administration causes an uncomfortable burning sensation. Previous research has shown that nerve fibers transmit pain sensation more slowly when they are “occupied” with other stimuli, such as vibration or cold. With the hypothesis that a cool, wet stimulus on the skin would attenuate pain associated with lidocaine injections and the bedside procedures that followed, investigators randomized 481 patients at a single center in Chicago to receive preprocedural subcutaneous injection of 1% lidocaine alone or to receive1 to 2 mL of 1% lidocaine dripped on the skin prior to subcutaneous injection of 1% lidocaine. Most of the procedures were…