Insulin syringe for anaesthetic injection in ptosis surgery: A randomised controlled clinical study

Abstract

Background: To evaluate the potential benefit of using insulin syringes for local anaesthesia in ptosis surgery.Methods: Sixty patients (120 eyelids) were included in this randomised, fellow eye-controlled study at a university‐based hospital. An insulin syringe was used on one eyelid and a conventional 30-gauge needle on the other. Patients were asked to score pain in both eyelids using a visual analogue scale (VAS) ranging from 0 (no pain at all) to 10 (unbearable pain). Ten minutes after the injection, an observer scored the degree of haemorrhage and oedema in both eyelids on a scale of 0 to 4.Results: The VAS score was 5.17 in the insulin syringe group and 5.35 in the 30-gauge needle group (p=0.264). Ten minutes after the anaesthesia, the haemorrhage score was 1.30 and 1.64 and eyelid oedema score was 1.50 and 1.80 in the insulin syringe and 30-gauge needle groups, respectively (haemorrhage, p=0.045; eyelid oedema, p=0.023). Conclusion: Injecting local anaesthesia using an insulin syringe, compared to conventional 30-gauge needles, significantly reduces haemorrhage and eyelid oedema before skin incision but does not significantly reduce the injection pain. Using insulin syringes also presents fewer complications related to tissue penetration and lesser distortion of anatomical structures compared to conventional 30-gauge needles. We recommend using an insulin syringe for local anaesthesia in ptosis surgery.Trial registration: registry – CRIS / registration number – KCT0005120 / date of registration: 12/06/2020 (retrospectively registered), https://cris.nih.go.kr/cris/index.jsp