• Giorgio Cozzi, Franca Crevatin, Veronica Dri, Gabriella Bertossa, Patrizia Rizzitelli, Daniela Matassi, Marta Minute, Luca Ronfani, and Egidio Barbi.
• From the Institute for Maternal and Child Health IRCCS Burlo Garofolo.
• Pediatr Emerg Care. 2021 Sep 1; 37 (9): e512e516e512-e516.

ObjectivesVenipuncture is one of the most frequently performed painful procedures in children. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of 2 analgesic strategies for venipuncture in children in a specific setting like a blood-drawing center.MethodsThis was a prospective randomized controlled trial. It was conducted in the blood-drawing center of a tertiary level children's hospital in Italy, between November 2014 and February 2015. Eligible patients were children aged from 4 to 12 years referred to the blood-drawing center for venipuncture. Enrolled children were randomized to be distracted by Buzzy device or by playing with a handheld computer. The procedural pain was measured with the faces pain scale-revised by children aged from 4 to 7 years and with a numerical rating scale by children aged from 8 to 12 years.ResultsTwo hundred children with a median age of 8 years were enrolled in the study. The self-reported procedural pain was not statistically different between the Buzzy group and the handheld computer group: median (interquartile range) = 3.0 (1.0-4.8) and 2.0 (1.0-4.8), respectively (P = 0.72). Children reported significant pain in 25% of cases with both distraction strategies. The procedural success rate at the first attempt was not significantly different in the 2 groups.ConclusionsAnalgesia provided by Buzzy or by a handheld computer was not significantly different in children undergoing venipuncture in a blood-drawing center, with the great proportion of them reporting no or mild pain during procedure.Copyright © 2018 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.

11 keywords...

hide…