Product Evaluation

CENTRIX

LolliCaine

Available in 4 flavors, this 20% benzocaine topical anesthetic gel is designed to provide fast, temporary relief during dental procedures

Whether performing scaling and root planing, injections, or other procedures, clinicians rely on topical anesthetics daily to minimize discomfort for their patients. For hygienist Donna Grzegorek, the perfect topical anesthetic would be fast acting, great tasting, and cost-effective. To Dr. Michael Slomnicki, who often applies a topical anesthetic prior to an injection, the ideal topical is one that’s effective, lasts as long as needed, and doesn’t run in the patient’s mouth.

The 2 clinicians were among a team of dentists and hygienists who recently evaluated Centrix’s LolliCaine topical anesthetic for Dental Product Shopper. Both were amazed at LolliCaine’s ability to satisfy all the criteria on their topical anesthetic wish list. “It was fast acting, had a great flavor, and patients felt the anesthesia provided by the benzocaine was more than adequate,” Grzegorek shared. Dr. Slomnicki said the 20% benzocaine gel stayed where it was placed, and “patients reported no pain upon entry of the needle.”

Indications and Packaging

LolliCaine is designed to provide fast, temporary relief of discomfort during periodontal curettage, scaling, root planing, rubber dam clamp placement, and other dental procedures. It is frequently used as a topical anesthetic prior to injection and also provides pain relief from denture sores and oral lesions. For Grzegorek, it relieved pain for her patients during scaling and root planing, prior to injection, and from orthodontic appliance irritation. “LolliCaine was very effective as a pre-injection topical,” noted Dr. David Fang. LuCinda Tripp, RDH, said her practice mainly used it to numb the gum tissue before injections or prior to hygiene scaling. “I used it as a topical anesthetic prior to scaling, and it helps to make the whole experience more pleasant,” she said.

Individually packaged doses of LolliCaine, called LolliPacks, reduce the potential for cross contamination and eliminate waste from over dosing. Instead of using large dollops of gel from a jar, clinicians can place 2 LolliPacks on the tray. If they don’t use it for that patient, the LolliPack can be wiped clean and returned to inventory. LolliCaine can also be sent home with patients to help relieve postop discomfort.

Flavor and Ease of Application

Patients have a choice of 4 pleasant flavors of LolliCaine—bubble gum, cherry, mint, and piña colada. “Kids were more accepting of the flavors of this topical as opposed to others,” noted pediatric dentist Dr. Rishi Verma. Grzegorek reported, “It was accepted well by patients, who commented on the great flavor.” Although their patients were happy with the 4 flavor choices, 2 dentists suggested adding more flavors. “My patients said it tasted fine and did not have the usual ‘awful’ taste,” said Dr. Slomnicki. Tripp’s patients commented on the pleasant taste right away. “I liked the variety of appealing tastes,” she said.

Easy to apply with a cotton swab, LolliCaine’s gel consistency allows the material to stay in place. “I liked the denser viscosity of this gel,” reported Dr. Fang. “It stayed where it was placed and seemed less likely to stimulate saliva during the injection phase.” Dr. Ami Bhagat said it was easy to apply and had a good consistency, and Dr. Slomnicki noted, “This topical stayed where I put it and didn’t run around in the patient’s mouth.” He added, “Anesthetizing a patient became less stressful and utilizing the product was easy.”

Onset Time and Desensitizing Ability

LolliCaine has a rapid onset time of less than 1 minute, with no systemic absorption and a 15-minute duration, according to Centrix. Hoping for a fast-acting topical with a pleasant flavor, Kimberly Moore, RDH, said, “LolliCaine allowed me to deliver a product that was pleasant tasting to patients and worked quickly.” Dr. Steven Fischthal praised LolliCaine’s rapid onset, and Dr. Sam Hamam called it a “definite improvement over other brands,” although he suggested a faster onset time.

“LolliCaine actually worked, and my patients reported that they didn’t feel the actual needle,” shared Dr. Slomnicki. Calling it a very good product for obtaining topical anesthesia, Dr. Bhagat explained how it was beneficial for apprehensive patients prior to injection. “Administering local anesthetic was less stressful because it reduced the pain of injection for the patient.” Charles Liu, DMD, said, “LolliCaine made initial needle penetration more comfortable; injections were more tolerable, especially infiltrations.” Calling it an excellent topical, Dr. Aisha Nasir said it made needle penetration easier, enabling her to administer comfortable anesthesia.

"Lollicaine made initial needle penetration more comfortable."
-Charles Liu, DMD
Mansfield, OH

Overall Satisfaction

Compared to other topical anesthetics used previously in his practice, Dr. Fang noted that LolliCaine worked better on all counts. “It’s an excellent tool to minimize any possible stress at the office, especially with very apprehensive patients,” he added. “I pride myself on painless injections, and I feel this topical makes them that much more predictable!”

Concluding that LolliCaine was “fast acting and cost-effective with a great flavor,” Grzegorek said, “It was awesome—a great addition to our armamentarium when fast tissue anesthesia is necessary.”

Takeaways

• A fast-acting 20% benzocaine topical anesthetic gel that stays where placed

• Provides fast, temporary pain relief during dental procedures, prior to injection, and for oral sores and lesions

• Available in 4 flavors - bubblegum, cherry, mint, and piña colada

• Rapid onset time, no systemic absorption, and a 15-minute duration