Comparative evaluation of the efficacy of lignocaine containing topical anesthetic agents during extraction of deciduous anterior teeth.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of 2%, 4% lignocaine, Eutectic Mixture of Local Anesthetics (EMLA) mixture and precaine topical anesthetic agents (with 1:1,000,000 epinephrine) during the extraction of deciduous anterior tooth. METHODS: Eighty patients with preshedding mobility of deciduous anterior tooth were divided randomly into four groups. Lignocaine, in amount of 2% and 4%, precaine and EMLA topical anesthetic agents were applied and the tooth was extracted. VAS has been used to assess the subjective pain while Wong-Baker Faces Scale and SEM Pain Scale have been used to record the objective pain to check the efficacy of these topical anesthetic agents. SPSS ver.17 was used for statistical analysis. Group comparison was done by ANOVA (Fishers F test) and inter comparison was done by Tukeys t-test. RESULTS: Based on the scoring criteria of VAS, SEM and Wong Bakers facial pain scales, precaine had best scores followed by EMLA mixture, 4% lignocaine, and then 2 % lignocaine during extraction of primary anterior teeth with preshedding mobility. CONCLUSIONS: The efficacy of precaine was superior compared to EMLA mixture followed by 4% lignocaine and 2% Lignocaine respectively.