Abstract
Objective
This study was performed to compare the analgesic effect of an ice cube with that of 4% lidocaine cream (L.M.X.4®) for intradermal skin testing.
Methods
In this prospective randomised study, healthy adult volunteers were divided into ice cube and lidocaine analgesic pretreatment groups. Randomisation was performed using a randomisation table in blocks of four. Intradermal skin testing was performed after applying ice in the ice cube group and 5 mg of lidocaine cream in the lidocaine group. After the intradermal skin test, the pain intensity was investigated using the visual analog scale (VAS) on questionnaires. We calculated that a minimum of 24 subjects were required for statistical power of 80% at a significance level of 0.05 (two-sided). The groups' VAS scores were compared using the Mann-Whitney U-test.
Results
The study population consisted of 35 volunteers: 17 in the ice cube group and 18 in the lidocaine group. There were no differences in demographic characteristics between the two groups. The median VAS score was 20 (interquartile range: 0-35) in the ice cube group and 70 (interquartile range: 50-80) in the lidocaine group (p<0.001).
Conclusions
The results suggested the utility of an ice cube as analgesic pretreatment for intradermal skin testing in the emergency department.