18 THERAPY

Therapy worse than procedure Not only is intracervical lidocaine ineffective as

pain relief in outpatient hysteroscopy, but its administration can be the most painful part of the whole procedure, according to a communication in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

A placebo-controlled trial in 100 women found that intracervical nerve block did nothing to reduce the incidence of stomach and shoulder tip pain, and 65% of women found the injection as, or more, painful than the hysteroscopy. Broadbent JAM. Hill NeW. Molnaar BG. Rolfe K. Magos. Randomized placebo controlled trial to a~sess the role of intracervical lignocaine in outpatient hysteroscopy. British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology 99:

777-780. Sep 1992 ""'''0.'''''

7 Nov 1992 INPHARMA'" ISSN 0156-270319211107-00161$1.00° Adis International Ltd