Abstract

Background Despite advances in the application of needle free devices in medical procedure, there is a paucity of knowledge on the efficacy of the jet injector for suturing skin wounds. Aims Our study aimed to compare the severity of pain and time to initiation of anaesthesia between two methods of local anaesthesia for skin suturing of small facial wounds. Methods We conducted a double blind randomised clinical trial between December 2012 and February 2013 at a university hospital in Tehran, Iran. 53 patients with small facial wounds needing skin closure with sutures were assigned to either the jet injection group or the needle infiltration group. Pain severity after administration of local anaesthesia and during the stitching procedure, and time to initiation of skin numbness were evaluated. Results Mean pain score during the anaesthetic procedure was 1.1 +/- 1 in the jet injector group compared with 4.4 +/- 1.4 in the needle infiltration group (p<0.0001). Moreover, time to initiation of local numbness was significantly longer in the jet injection group than in the needle infiltration group (p<0.0001). Nevertheless, suture procedure related pain scores did not differ significantly between the two groups (p>0.05). Conclusions The jet injector is an effective device in reducing the pain of the anaesthetic procedure for small facial wounds. However, the remarkably lower pain should be evaluated in light of other parameters, including acceptance and preference of the newly introduced technique.