The effect of pre-cooling the injection site on pediatric pain perception during the administration of local anesthesia.

AIM: The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of cooling the soft tissue of injection sites on the pain perceptions of pediatric patients during the administration of local anesthesia for routine dental procedures.

METHODS AND MATERIALS: A total of 160 children aged 5-6 years were included in the present study. On a random basis, the subjects were allocated to the without ice pretreatment (WIP) group (topical anesthesia + counterstimulation + distraction) or the ice pretreatment (IP) group (cooling + topical anesthesia + counterstimulation + distraction). During the administration of an inferior alveolar nerve block, the children's behavior was assessed using the sound, eye, and motor (SEM) scale. The statistical analysis of data was performed based on the analysis of variance (ANOVA).

RESULTS: There were no significant differences within the groups between the values of the sound, eye, and motor components for either the WIP or the IP groups (P>0.05). All three components of the SEM in the IP group were consistently lower than the WIP group (P<0.05). Moreover, the SEM value for the WIP group surpassed the IP group (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: Cooling the site of infiltration block prior to the injection of local anesthesia significantly reduced the pain perceived during injection of local anesthetic agent in pediatric patients.

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Pre-cooling of the soft tissues of an injection site prior to the administration of a local anesthetic can minimize the discomfort and anxiety associated with the injection procedure and facilitates the management of pediatric patients during this phase of a dental procedure.