Journal of travel medicine
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Topical vapocoolant quickly and effectively reduces vaccine-associated pain: results of a randomized, single-blinded, placebo-controlled study.
Comprehensive international travel preparation often requires several vaccines. Up to 90% of adults have some fear of injections, mostly due to injection-related pain. Pediatric studies with routine vaccines have shown topical anesthetic EMLA cream (lidocaine and prilocaine, Astra Pharmaceuticals, Inc.) and the topical vapocoolant Fluori-Methane (dichlorodifluoromethane and trichlorodifluoromethane, Gebauer Co.) to be equally effective in reducing pain from vaccinations. EMLA cream is expensive and requires a 60-min application, while Fluori-Methane (FM) is immediate in onset of action and inexpensive. Skin anesthesia begins at 10 degrees C. Fluori-Methane can briefly cool the skin to 0 degrees C. ⋯ The topical vapocoolant Fluori-Methane is an effective, quick, preferred, inexpensive agent for reducing vaccine-associated injection pain for international travel clients.