Vapocoolant Spray for Reducing the Pain of Spinal Needle Insertion

This was a single-blind, randomized controlled trial. Sixty-six patients who underwent caudal epidural injection were randomized into the vapocoolant spray group or local infiltration group. Before the insertion of a 20-gauge spinal needle, the subcutaneous tissue was infiltrated with 3 ml of 2% lidocaine in the local infiltration group and vapocoolant spray was applied just before the spinal needle insertion in the spray group. 100-mm visual analog scale to evaluate the pain intensity of spinal needle insertion and a five-point Likert scale for patient satisfaction and preference for repeated use were compared between the two groups.