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Xylocaine gel effectively reduces pain in LASIK
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BEIJING — A Xylocaine gel may be an effective additional tool for reducing peri- and intra-operative pain associated with LASIK and could have applications in other refractive procedures, according to a surgeon speaking here at the 25th APAO Congress.
 Dennis S.C. Lam |
Dennis S.C. Lam, MD, presented results of prospective, randomized, controlled study assessing patient reported pain scores in which Xylocaine (lidocaine HCl, AstraZeneca) gel or GenTeal (hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, Novartis) gel was administered in addition to Alcaine (proparacaine hydrochloride, Alcon) eye drops prior to LASIK surgery.
A total of 51 patients gave a pain score for different steps of the procedure including speculum placement, microkeratome cut, ablation and overall. They were also asked to rate pain at 15, 30 and 45 minutes following surgery. In every category, except speculum placement, and time interval measured, the Xylocaine gel showed a statistically significant reduction in pain scores compared with GenTeal gel.
"The Xylocaine gel may increase patient comfort, thus improving cooperation and safety in LASIK," Dr. Lam said.
He emphasized that larger scale studies are needed on the use of the gel in LASIK to see if a change in nomogram is needed due, and also because the gel may be similarly useful in other refractive procedures such as PRK, LASEK or femtosecond-laser flap creation.