[Pain relief in vein puncture. Application time and effectiveness of lidocaine-prilocaine-cream].

A 5% lidocaine-prilocaine local anaesthetic cream, EMLA (Eutectic Mixture of Local Anaesthetics), has proved to be an effective remedy for alleviation of venipuncture pain when applied to intact skin for 60 min. A shorter application time would improve the usefulness in unscheduled cases. This study was designed to evaluate the analgetic effect with shorter application times, and possible adverse reactions. EMLA and placebo were compared in a double-blind, randomized study in 110 children aged 4-16 years with application times of 20 min and longer. Application area was the antecubital fossa and the patients were not premedicated. A regression analysis showed no correlation between analgetic effect and application time. Pain scores after treatment with EMLA were statistically significantly lower than after placebo treatment (z = 5.77, p less than 0.001) irrespective of application time. Local adverse reactions consisted of transient paleness or redness of the skin, which did not constitute any clinical problem.