Photo Credit: Liudmila Chernetska

For patients with burns undergoing enzymatic debridement, tumescent anesthesia with lidocaine (TLA) effectively manages pain, according to results published in Burns. The researchers assessed adults with thermal burns on the trunk or multiple locations who did not require mechanical ventilation due to other causes. In the case group, 10 patients received TLA; in the control group, 13 patients received standard care. The researchers evaluated pain at multiple points. In the TLA group, there was a statistically significant decline in perceived pain over time (P<0.001) and not in the control group. The Mann-Whitney U test indicated a difference in pain between the two groups (P<0.05), with lower pain levels in the TLA group. “This approach improves patient outcomes and satisfaction by providing effective pain control, minimizing recovery time, and offering a viable alternative to traditional anesthesia methods,” the researchers wrote. “Further research with larger, multi-center studies is recommended to validate these findings and establish standardized protocols for TLA in burn care.”