Lidocaine as a pain reliever
Lidocaine is a local anesthetic that is usually injected to control or prevent pain during certain medical procedures or relieve existing pain in the body. It provides pain relief which may last for varying periods of time. For instance, the effects may last from a few hours to weeks or even months. The duration of these effects is dependent on the frequency and dosage of lidocaine injected. The relief from lidocaine can be used to help implement other lifestyle strategies to manage pain, like mindfulness and exercise. Lidocaine can also be applied as a patch or cream for treatment of painful areas.
Education
Lidocaine may reduce pain
We can pick up sensory information from our environment or within our body. This sensory information travels from that source to the spinal cord and brain to be integrated, processed, and interpreted. In the presence of lidocaine, however, the travel between the pain source and the brain is either delayed or reduced. This is the effect of lidocaine on our bodies. It decreases pain and fatigue sensations which the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) gets to process. The duration of its effects may vary depending on its dosage and the receiver’s genetic components.
Published Research
Lidocaine injections into the muscle
Dr. Staud is a UF College of Medicine professor, researcher, and practicing physician. He conducted a study on the effects of lidocaine injections on persistent pain and fatigue in patients with fibromyalgia (FM) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). The lidocaine injections resulted in a significant decrease of pain and fatigue among participants with CFS or FM.
managing pain and fatigue
Our Pain Relief Program
One intervention alone often provides only limited pain relief. Relying on single interventions, like medications, physical therapy, or cognitive behavioral therapy is often not enough. For more effective relief from chronic muscle pain, we recommend combination therapy, which consists of 3 components: 1) a series of muscle injection with powerful anesthetics, 2) aerobic exercise, 3) mindfulness therapy