Most health care providers use the verbal warning "sharp scratch" before venipuncture. Most patients find this acceptable and prefer it to no warning. An exception may be elderly patients, who may prefer to be distracted by conversation. "Sharp scratch" makes no difference to the pain experienced compared with a verbal cue.
Almost three quarters of patients spontaneously look away during venepuncture, but their pain ratings are almost twice that of the quarter of patients who look. It is unclear why this may be, but previous experimental studies indicate that observing the body when a noxious stimulus is applied can have an analgesic effect.
SUMMARYA 91-year-old man was admitted having been found unresponsive in his bed. He was previously well, but had sustained a laceration over the dorsum of his forearm after a recent fall. Initial appearances were innocuous, and suggestive of a superficial wound infection.
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