Tetracaine Versus Lidocaine Gel for Anesthetic Effect and Comfort in Patients Undergoing LASIK
Status:
Terminated
Trial end date:
2011-10-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
In this study the investigators will be comparing two different types of anesthetic, a
numbing eye drop and a numbing gel, to test if they are equally effective or if one has a
better outcome in terms of the level of comfort you experience one hour and one day after
your surgery. The two medications are commonly used and appear to be equally effective for
other types of eye surgery, such as cataract surgery. This study will show if one type of
anesthesia is preferred over another by patients getting LASIK. Before your LASIK procedure,
you will be given a short questionnaire to determine the baseline comfort of your eyes. In
the operating room, one type of anesthetic will be put in one eye, and the other medication
will be put in the other eye. Which anesthetic you get in each eye will be chosen in a random
way (similar to flipping a coin). After your LASIK surgery, the investigators will ask you if
you felt more comfort in your right eye, your left eye, or if they were equal, and the
investigators will ask you the same survey questions that were asked prior to your LASIK to
get more details about your experience.
*Of note- the randomization being done is for which eye will be receiving the lidocaine and
which eye will be receiving the tetracaine. Each patient will receive lidocaine in 1 eye and
tetracaine in the other eye, the randomization is for each individual eye. This means, of 11
patients in our study, 22 eyes received treatment. 11 eyes received lidocaine and 11 eyes
received tetracaine.
when we did our comparison, 11 values were used for lidocaine and 11 eyes were used for
tetracaine, giving a total of 22 eyes. This is important to note since the randomization
refers to EYE for each individual patient, and not for the patient (ie: participant means 1
eye, not 1 person in the descriptions below).