Journal of pediatric nursing
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Venipuncture is one of the most painful medical procedures for a child, and it is one of the most frequently performed. This literature synthesis reviews evidence for the use of eutectic mixture of local anesthetics (EMLA) cream to reduce the pain children experience during venipuncture. EMLA cream was compared with placebo, iontophoresis, and amethocaine cream and was found to be an effective local anesthetic for pediatric venipuncture pain during both intravenous cannulation and phlebotomy.
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A primary purpose of this study was to examine relationships among nurses' knowledge and attitudes about children' pain relief, nurses' abilities to overcome barriers to optimal pain management, nurses' analgesic practices, and pain levels of hospitalized children. Significant positive relationships were found between nurses' (N = 67) analgesic administration and children's pain, and between nurses' years of practice with children and nurses' abilities to overcome barriers to optimal pain management. ⋯ Of the 117 children who reported pain, 74% received analgesia. Nurses administered a mean of 37.9% of available morphine and means of 36% to 54% of recommended amounts of morphine, acetaminophen, and codeine.