Topical intrapocket anesthesia during scaling and root planing: a randomized clinical trial.

Although the use of injectable anesthesia prior to subgingival scaling and root planing (SRP) reduces pain, many patients report fear and prolonged numbness of adjacent tissues. The aim of the present study was to compare the effects of a eutectic mixture containing 25 mg/g of lidocaine and 25 mg/g of prilocaine, injectable 2% lidocaine, topical 2% benzocaine and a placebo substance on reducing pain during SRP. In this randomized, split-mouth, masked clinical trial, thirty-two patients presenting more than two teeth with probing depth and clinical attachment level >/= 5 mm in at least 4 sextants were randomly allocated to four groups: EMLA(r); injectable 2% lidocaine; topical 2% benzocaine and placebo. Pain and discomfort were measured using a visual analogue scale (VAS) and verbal scale (VS). Repeated-measures analysis of variance and Poisson regression were used for analysis. Patient satisfaction with the anesthesia was determined at the end of each treatment session. VAS and VS scores did not differ between injectable 2% lidocaine and EMLA (p > 0.05) and both substances showed significantly better pain control compared to 2% benzocaine and placebo (p < 0.05). 93.7% and 81.2% of the individuals were satisfied with the injectable anesthetic and EMLA, respectively (p = 0.158). Dissatisfaction with benzocaine and placebo was approximately 10 times greater than injectable anesthesia (p = 0.001). In conclusion, EMLA showed an equivalent effect on pain control when compared to the injectable anesthesia and performed better than 2% benzocaine in SRP. Thus, EMLA is a viable anesthetic option during scaling and root planning, despite the frequent need for second application.