Abstract
Needle procedures, like venipuncture and intravenous (IV) catheter insertion, are recognized as a common cause of pain and fear for children in hospitals and emergency departments. The purpose of this study was to compare children's self-reported pain and fear related to IV insertion with administration of either the topical local anesthetic EMLA® or 1% buffered lidocaine delivered with the J-Tip Needleless Injection System® (J-Tip®). In this prospective, randomized trial, 150 consecutive pediatric patients 8 to 18years of age undergoing IV insertion were randomly assigned 1:1 to treatment group. Participants self-reported procedural pain using a Visual Analog Scale, and procedural fear using the Children's Fear Scale. Procedural pain scores were significantly lower in the EMLA® group (mean score 1.63+1.659) vs. the J-Tip® group (2.99±2.586; p<0.001). post-procedure fear scores were significantly lower than pre-procedure fear scores in both treatment groups (p><0.002), but there was no difference in fear scores between the two treatment groups (p="0.314)." emla® provided superior pain relief for iv insertion compared to j-tip®. although emla® use resulted in lower self-reported pain scores compared to j-tip®, pain scores for both treatments were low and fear scores did not differ. when iv insertion can be delayed for 60-90min, emla® should be used. when a delay is contraindicated, j-tip® may be a reasonable alternative to minimize procedural pain of iv insertion.>
