CERVICAL MUCOSAL BLOCK EFFECTIVELY REDUCES THE PAIN AND CRAMPING FROMCRYOSURGERY

BACKGROUND. Cryosurgery is an effective treatment for squamous intraep ithelial lesions, but causes pain and cramping regardless of the parti cular method of cryosurgery used. The purpose of our study was to dete rmine how effective a four-quadrant cervical mucosal block is in reduc ing the pain and cramping of cryosurgery. METHODS. Of the 112 women pr esenting for cryosurgery at the teaching clinics of the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine at Truman Medical Center-East between September 1995 and September 1996, 87 completed the study. The first 39 women were given the standard treatment of no block with the cryosurgery procedure. The subsequent 48 women were given a four-quad rant submucosal black of 1% lidocaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine 5 min utes before cryosurgery. The intensity of pain and cramping of each pa rt of the procedure was measured on 100-mm visual analog scales. RESUL TS. The pain and cramping of cryosurgery were significantly reduced (P <.05) with the mucosal block for all measured parts of the cryosurger y procedure, including pain of the first freeze (39 mm vs 12 mm), cram ping of the first freeze (49 mm vs 13 mm), pain of the second freeze ( 24 mm vs 12 mm), cramping of the second freeze (32 mm vs 18 mm), pain of the total composite procedure (44 mm vs 28 mm), and cramping of the total composite procedure (51 mm vs 21 mm). CONCLUSIONS. A four-quadr ant mucosal block effectively reduces the amount of pain and cramping associated with cryosurgery.