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         article-type="Research Paper"
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  <front>
    <journal-meta>
      <journal-title-group>
        <journal-title>American Journal of Pharmacy and Health Research</journal-title>
        <abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="publisher">AJPHR</abbrev-journal-title>
      </journal-title-group>
      <issn pub-type="epub">2321-3647</issn>
    </journal-meta>
    <article-meta>
      <article-id pub-id-type="publisher-id">AJPHR8140002</article-id>
      <title-group>
        <article-title>COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF INJECTION PAIN DURING ADMINISTRATION OF LOCAL ANAESTHESIA AFTER TOPICAL ANAESTHETIC GEL VERSUS CRYOTHERAPY APPLICATION: A RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIAL</article-title>
      </title-group>
      <contrib-group>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <name>
            <surname>Bidave</surname>
            <given-names>Dr. Sunayana</given-names>
          </name>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1"/>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <name>
            <surname>Shenoi</surname>
            <given-names>Dr. Pratima</given-names>
          </name>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1"/>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <name>
            <surname>Makade</surname>
            <given-names>Dr. Chetana</given-names>
          </name>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1"/>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <name>
            <surname>Badole</surname>
            <given-names>Dr. Gautam</given-names>
          </name>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1"/>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <name>
            <surname>Ramteke</surname>
            <given-names>Dr. Ankita</given-names>
          </name>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1"/>
        </contrib>
      </contrib-group>
      <aff id="aff1">Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics Ranjeet Deshmukh Dental College (VSPM Dental College), Nagpur, India</aff>
      <pub-date pub-type="epub" iso-8601-date="2026-08-01">
        <month>08</month>
        <day>01</day>
        <year>2026</year>
      </pub-date>
      <volume>14</volume>
      <issue>8</issue>
      <fpage>16</fpage>
      <lpage>23</lpage>
      <abstract>
        <p>Background: The insertion of local anesthetic solution remains one of the most dreaded events during dental treatment, and discomfort from needle penetration is a recognised source of dental anxiety and treatment avoidance. Topical anesthetic gels and pre-injection cooling (cryotherapy) have both been proposed to reduce this discomfort, yet direct comparisons in adult endodontic patients are limited. Objective: To compare pain perception during administration of local anesthesia following a 2% lignocaine topical gel versus a standardized ice-stick cryotherapy protocol. Materials and Methods: In this two-arm crossover randomized controlled trial, patients aged 18–60 years requiring endodontic treatment in at least two teeth received both protocols at separate sites: 2% lignocaine gel (Group A) for 1 minute and a customized ice stick measuring 5 mm × 10 mm (Group B) for 15 seconds before injection. Injection pain was self-rated on a 10 cm visual analogue scale (VAS), and scores were compared using the Mann–Whitney U test at a 5% level of significance. Results: The mean VAS score was 3.65 ± 1.00 in Group A and 2.53 ± 0.94 in Group B, a statistically significant difference (z = −2.888, p = 0.004) indicating lower injection pain with cryotherapy. Conclusion: Pre-injection cryotherapy using a standardized ice stick produced significantly less injection pain than 2% lignocaine topical gel. It offers a simple, inexpensive and non-pharmacological chairside adjunct that can be readily incorporated into routine endodontic practice.</p>
      </abstract>
      <kwd-group kwd-group-type="author">
        <kwd>Cryotherapy; Injection pain; Local anesthesia; Topical anesthetic; Visual analogue scale; Endodontics.</kwd>
        <kwd>Dental anxiety; Crossover study; Lignocaine</kwd>
        <kwd>Ice stick;Nerve endings;Perception</kwd>
      </kwd-group>
    </article-meta>
  </front>
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