Today eighteen-year-old Ismail Choudhury is taking part in a pain study.

“Which of these represents how nervous you feel about a needle stick?” director of emergency research, Dr. Amy Lynn Baxter of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta asks him. On a scale of 1 to 5, he’s about a three and a half.

Sharp needles, IVs, drawing blood- all of these can hurt. But how do you stop the pain?

That’s what this study is about.

Baxter is using a small device strapped to Ismail’s arm to distract him from the pain. “So, what we’ve got is this part vibrates and this part is cold, so it kind of acts like running water on your hand while she’s doing the IV,” the doctor tells Ismail.

The idea behind it is to use physical stimulation to block sharp pain. And to do that they work on two different kinds of pain nerves.

“One of those kinds is temperature sensation and the other one is movement or light touch, so if you can stimulate the movement nerves, that by itself will decrease pain,” explains Baxter.

The other nerve, Baxter says is temperature. “If you can stimulate the temperature nerves like putting a cold pack on something when you’ve been hurt, that can stop the sharp pain.”

In Ismail’s brain, the pain of a needle is diminished by the double sensation of cold and vibration.

“How did it feel?” Baxter asks Ismail as she takes the device off his arm. “It didn’t hurt as much,” he says.

Doctors say, in medicine, there is always something more to learn.

“We never have it all the way right. There’s always stuff to learn,” says Dr. Lonnie King, of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. “Even every- we get a new medicine it has its own new problems, so we’ve gotta learn ways to deal with that and that’s some of the things that we’re doing. Some of the things are old establish treatments and they really haven’t been looked at scientifically, it’s just stuff that’s the way it’s been done.”

Tips for Parents
A recent survey finds that up to 70 percent of kids and 69 percent of mothers experience fear, stress or anxiety during a visit to the doctor or hospital that includes an inoculation, blood draw or IV, according to a survey from the biopharmaceutical company Anesiva. The survey included more than a thousand parents with children under 10 years of age. Experts say the tension parents feel adds to the anxiety their child feels during such a procedure. This survey highlights the importance of finding alternative ways to relieve stress in the doctor’s office.

The survey also found:
- 57 percent of children cry
- 55 percent of children have trouble sitting still
- 14 percent try to run away
- Only 13 percent of children have been offered topical numbing creams
- Only 14 percent have used television, a proven distraction
- Only 30 percent of parents said they "always" felt ready for such a procedure

Fearing the Needle
Try bringing stuffed animals to comfort them or even a portable DVD player to distract them while getting their vaccinations.
Needle anxiety is contagious. Try to separate older siblings from the younger ones at the doctor’s office if there is any sign of panic.
Children can also sense if the parent has anxiety over shots. Try to remain calm for your child during the procedure.
Be honest about how the shot will feel. Tell them there will be a little prick, but it won’t last long.
Bribery usually doesn’t work. You can promise anything, and they’ll say they won’t cry, but usually they do and you’ll have to give them the bribe anyway.

References
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta
National Network for Child Care
Anesiva

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