Liposomal encapsulation improves the duration of soft tissue anesthesia but does not induce pulpal anesthesia.

STUDY OBJECTIVE

To compare the topical and the pulpal anesthesia efficacy of liposomal and plain benzocaine formulations.

DESIGN

Double-blinded, randomized crossover study.

SETTING

University ambulatory dental center.

PATIENTS

30 ASA physical status I volunteers.

INTERVENTIONS

Volunteers received, in three different sessions, topical application of liposome-encapsulated 10% benzocaine (LB10), 10% benzocaine gel (B10), and 20% benzocaine gel (B20) in the right maxillary canine mucobuccal fold.

MEASUREMENTS

Pain associated with the needle insertion was rated by visual analog scale (VAS) and the duration of topical anesthesia was recorded. Pulpal anesthesia was evaluated using an electric pulp tester.

MAIN RESULTS

VAS values (median, 1st - 3rd quartiles) were 17 cm (11 - 25), 14 cm (3 - 22), and 21 cm (9 - 21) for B10, LB10, and B20, respectively. No differences were noted among the groups (Friedman test; P = 0.58). Soft tissue anesthesia was also not different. The LB10 [10 (8 - 12) min] showed longer soft tissue anesthesia (Friedman test; P < 0.01) than the other agents [B10 = 8 (5 - 10) min, and B20 = 7 (6 - 9) min]. None of the topical benzocaine formulations tested induced pulpal anesthesia.

CONCLUSIONS

The encapsulation of benzocaine into liposome increased the duration of soft tissue anesthesia. However, it did not induce pulpal anesthesia.