Emla

Emla is a medicine with a local anesthetic effect.

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Indications Emla

It is used as a surface anesthetic for injections, catheterization in the vascular area, and also during surgical operations and punctures.

The cream is also used on the legs to provide superficial pain relief for trophic ulcers, and also before painful procedures in the area of the genital mucosa (exclusively in adult patients).

Along with this, the medication is often used during certain cosmetic procedures:

• removal of previously made tattoos, hair removal, scar correction;
• elimination of wrinkles, as well as correction affecting the nasolabial folds, etc.;
• before performing mesotherapy procedures;
• before the administration of medications (Restylane, Botox, etc.);
• elimination of telangiectasias.

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Release form

It is produced in the form of a cream, in tubes of 5 g. Inside the pack there are 5 such tubes, complete with 12 sealed stickers. It can also be produced in tubes of 30 g - there is 1 such tube inside the box.

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Pharmacodynamics

The painkiller Emla prevents the process of generating impulses inside the receptors of sensory nerves, and in addition, it prevents the conduction of excitation impulses in the area of nerve fibers.

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Pharmacokinetics

The cream's peak effectiveness is observed 60 minutes after application of the medicine. Its duration of action is 30 minutes.

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Dosing and administration

The medicine must be used externally - on the skin or mucous membranes.

For minor surgical procedures or injections, 1.5-2 g of cream is often used to treat 10 cm2 ^of skin surface, after which this area is covered with a hermetic patch (for 1-5 hours).

If it is necessary to perform the procedure on a large area of skin, use 1.5-2 g/cm2 ^of the substance, after which the area is covered with a sealed adhesive tape (for 2-5 hours).

As a surface anesthetic for treating trophic ulcers on the legs, the preparation is applied in a dose of about 1-2 g/cm2 ⁽ apply a thick layer of cream). A maximum of 10 g of the drug is allowed per procedure. The hermetic patch is applied for 30 minutes. If there are difficulties with the penetration of the substance into the tissue, the retention time of the patch can be extended to 60 minutes. Mechanical cleaning should begin a maximum of 10 minutes after removing the patch. The cream can be used no more than 15 times during the 30-60 day period.

There are several different schemes for using the drug when treating mucous membranes in the genital area.

As a painkiller before performing injections of local anesthetics, it is prescribed in the amount of 1-2 g / 10 cm ² of surface. The cream should be applied in a thick layer. For women, the period of application of the drug is 1 hour, and for men - a maximum of 15 minutes.

During the removal of condylomas, as well as for pain relief before local anesthetic injections, approximately 5-10 g of the substance must be applied to the mucous membrane. The substance must be held for 5-10 minutes. The manipulation should be carried out immediately after the cream has been removed from the mucous membrane.

For children, the medicine is used as an anesthetic when performing injections, as well as other surgical procedures of a superficial nature - in a maximum dose of 1 g / 10 cm ². The medicine should be applied in a thick layer, after which the treated area should be covered with a sealed sticker.

When treating atopic dermatitis, it is necessary to reduce the application time to 15-30 minutes.

Emla is often used for cosmetic procedures, such as bikini and other areas of hair removal. The required areas of skin are treated with a thick layer of cream and the medication is kept on for about 0.5-1 hour before the procedure. If hair removal is required on a large area of skin, several tubes of the preparation may be required.

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Use Emla during pregnancy

There is insufficient information regarding the use of prilocaine with lidocaine in pregnant women.

The above elements are able to pass through the placenta. There is no information that they can lead to reproductive disorders (increased risk of developmental abnormalities, as well as direct or indirect negative effects on the fetus), but in any case, the risk of using drugs in humans has not been sufficiently studied.

The data on the effects of prilocaine with lidocaine on pregnancy, fetal and embryonic development, as well as the process of parturition and development of the infant after birth, which were obtained from animal tests, are considered incomplete.

However, there is an opinion that with short-term use of Emla in a pregnant woman, the benefits of its use will be higher than the risk of complications.

Small amounts of lidocaine with prilocaine pass into breast milk. When using the cream in the recommended doses, the risk of exposure to the baby will be extremely low. This allows breastfeeding to continue while using the drug.

Contraindications

Main contraindications:

• the presence of intolerance to the drug;
• use in infants born before 37 weeks of gestation;
• The cream is prohibited for use in newborns weighing less than 3 kg, and the therapeutic system is prohibited for use on surfaces with open wounds.

Caution is required when prescribing the cream to people with G6PD deficiency, atopic dermatitis, and also idiopathic or hereditary methemoglobinemia.

The therapeutic system is used with caution when applied to the area near the eyes (this may cause irritation), before the BCG procedure, in case of atopic dermatitis and in case of G6PD deficiency.

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Side effects Emla

The use of the drug may cause certain side effects: the appearance of edema, allergies, erythema, and pallor. Along with this, local symptoms may occur - itching or burning in the treatment area.

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Overdose

When using the drug in accordance with the instructions, the probability of poisoning is extremely low. Among the possible symptoms of overdose are a feeling of strong excitement, and in addition to this, suppression of cardiac function and the central nervous system.

If neurological manifestations develop to a severe degree, symptomatic measures must be taken. For example, if convulsions occur, anticonvulsants should be used.

After the symptoms of systemic poisoning have begun to be eliminated, the patient's condition must be monitored for several hours.

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Interactions with other drugs

People using class 3 antiarrhythmic drugs should use Emla cream with caution.

It is not recommended to combine the medication with drugs that cause the development of methemoglobinemia in patients under 1 year of age.

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Storage conditions

Emla should be kept out of the reach of small children. Do not freeze the cream. The temperature when containing the medicinal product cannot exceed 30°C.

Shelf life

Emla can be used for 3 years from the date of manufacture of the drug.

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Application for children

Emla can be prescribed to children from birth, taking into account the indications for different age categories. Newborns up to 2 months, infants 3-11 months, and children 1-11 years of age are used for superficial anesthesia of the skin at the injection site (for example, when taking blood samples or for inserting a catheter into a peripheral vein), as well as when performing superficial surgical operations.

The cream can also be used to eliminate molluscum contagiosum.

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Analogues

The following medications are analogs of the cream: Artifrin with Anestezol, Lidocaine and Articaine with Kamistad and Ultracaine, in addition to this, Cathejel with lidocaine, Detinox and Menovazin. Most of these medications are solutions for external use. There are also gels among them.

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Reviews

Emla receives quite a lot of different reviews from patients. Most of them are positive, although there are also comments from dissatisfied people. Often, the comments include opinions of girls who used the drug during hair removal procedures, and most of them say that the cream was useful. But there are also negative reviews from those people who did not feel the anesthetic effect of the drug at all.

As a result, we can say that the effectiveness of the cream for each individual patient is individual. There is also an opinion that creams with such properties are able to anesthetize only the skin surface, and the hairs are located deeper, which is why painful sensations still occur. Therefore, some cosmetologists refuse to use Emla as an anesthetic during hair removal procedures, instead giving their clients pain-relieving injections.