EMLA cream reduces the pain of venepuncture in children.

EMLA cream (eutectic mixture of local anaesthetics) was tested in a double-blind clinical trial to examine its effect on the pain of venepuncture at induction of anaesthesia in 40 children (aged 3-13 yrs). Four pain-assessment methods were used and an assessment of the technical ease of venepuncture was made. EMLA was found to reduce significantly the pain and technical difficulty of venepuncture. This study confirms that EMLA is an effective method of reducing the pain and technical difficulty of paediatric venepuncture using 25-gauge needles for induction of anaesthesia in children.