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CompletedNCT02427724Updated Jul 1, 2026

The Effect of Topical Anesthetics on Patients' Pain and Operative Experience During Treatment With QSwitched Laser

An Early Phase 1 interventional study of lidocaine 2.5%/prilocaine 2.5% topical anesthetic and lidocaine 7%/tetracaine 7% topical anesthetic in Lentigo, sponsored by Northwestern University. Completed at 1 site in United States. Open to female participants aged 25 Years to 65 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-07-01.

Sponsored by Northwestern University · Early Phase 1, Interventional, and Other

From the registry’s dates

  • Primary completion was May 2024, 2 years 5 months ago, and no results have been posted to the registry.
Phase
Early Phase 1
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
48
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
25 Years to 65 Years
Sex
Female
01

Study summary

This study will conduct a split-face and -body randomized control trial to compare lidocaine 2.5%/prilocaine 2.5% topical anesthetic (LPTA), lidocaine 7%/tetracaine 7% topical anesthetic (LTTA), and placebo vechicle (PV) on patients' pain perceptions with Q-switched 532nm laser for the treatment of lentigines and/or photorejuvenation.Subjects will fill out a pain score on a visual analog scale (VAS) with 0 being no pain and 10 being most pain after each treatment area is completed.

02

Conditions studied

  • Lentigo

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03

In context

Lentigo

28 studies on the registry are indexed under Lentigo; 2 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 48 is above the median of 30 across 25 interventional studies indexed under Lentigo.

Browse Lentigo studies →

Lead sponsor

Northwestern University is the lead sponsor of 1,423 studies on the registry; 198 are open to participants now.

Of its 105 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 78 (74%) have results posted.

Browse Northwestern University studies →

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
25 Years to 65 Years
Sexes eligible
Female
Accepts healthy volunteers
Yes

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  1. Patients who have moderate lentigines and/or photodamage and desire laser toning.
  2. Females 25-65 years of age.
  3. In good health.
  4. Have Fitzpatrick phototype I-III.
  5. Willingness and the ability to understand and provide and communicate with the investigator/study staff.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Younger than 25 or older than 65 years of age.
  2. Pregnant or lactating.
  3. Is a male.

  4. Has received the following treatments on the face:

    • ablative or non-ablative laser procedure in the past 3 months
    • radiofrequency device treatment in the past 3 months
    • ultrasound device treatment in the past 3 months
    • medium to deep chemical peel in the past 3 months
  5. Has an active infection on the face or upper inner arms (excluding mild acne).
  6. Is allergic to lidocaine, tetracaine, or prilocaine.
  7. Has kidney disease and/or liver disease.
  8. Has G-6-PD and/or pseudocholinesterase deficiency.
  9. Is taking a class I anti-arrhythmic medication.
  10. Is tanned.
  11. Has a history of hyperpigmentation with laser treatment.
  12. Has a mental illness.
  13. Has a history of a chronic pain condition such as fibromyalgia or vulvodynia.
  14. Unable to understand the protocol or to give .
  15. Multiply recurrent episodes of cold sores.
  16. Any significant skin disease beyond mild acne.
  17. Any other condition that would, in the professional opinion of the investigator, potentially affect response or participation in the clinical clinical study, or would pose as an unacceptable risk to the subject.
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(1)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

Informed consent

Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.

You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.

05

Study design

Phase
Early Phase 1
Primary purpose
Other
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Double (Participant, Investigator)
Enrollment
48 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Active comparator
    lidocaine 2.5%/prilocaine 2.5% topical anesthetic

    Subjects will be screened, assessed, and randomized to be treated with a single pass of the Q-switched 532nm laser after application of LPTA, LTTA, or PV under occlusion to the assigned randomized site.

    Drug: lidocaine 2.5%/prilocaine 2.5% topical anesthetic · Device: Q-switched 532nm Laser

  • Active comparator
    lidocaine 7%/tetracaine 7% topical anesthetic

    Subjects will be screened, assessed, and randomized to be treated with a single pass of the Q-switched 532nm laser after application of LPTA, LTTA, or PV under occlusion to the assigned randomized site.

    Drug: lidocaine 7%/tetracaine 7% topical anesthetic · Device: Q-switched 532nm Laser

  • Placebo comparator
    placebo vehicle

    Subjects will be screened, assessed, and randomized to be treated with a single pass of the Q-switched 532nm laser after application of LPTA, LTTA, or PV under occlusion to the assigned randomized site.

    Drug: placebo vehicle · Device: Q-switched 532nm Laser

Interventions

  • Druglidocaine 2.5%/prilocaine 2.5% topical anesthetic

    Drug page: Lidocaine

  • Druglidocaine 7%/tetracaine 7% topical anesthetic

    Drug page: Lidocaine

  • Drugplacebo vehicle
  • DeviceQ-switched 532nm Laser
06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. visual analog score (VAS) pain rating

    Subjects will fill out a visual analog score (VAS) pain rating after treatment with 0 being no pain and 10 being worst pain

    Time frame: Day of treatment

07

Study locations

1 site
  • Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Department of Dermatology
    Chicago, Illinois 60611, United States
08

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
Not marked actual or estimatedDates not marked actual or estimated

The record gives a start of Apr 2015, a primary completion of May 2024 and a completion of May 2024. It does not say whether these dates are actual or estimated.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Apr 13, 2015
First posted
Apr 28, 2015
Start
Apr 2015
Primary completionActual
May 30, 2024
CompletionActual
May 30, 2024
Last update
Jul 1, 2026
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Jul 1, 2026, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT02427724
Lead sponsor
Northwestern University
Responsible party
Murad Alam (Professor in Dermatology, Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, and Surgery, Northwestern University) — Principal investigator
First posted
Apr 28, 2015
Start date
Apr 2015
Primary completion
May 30, 2024
Completion
May 30, 2024
Last update
Jul 1, 2026

Study contacts

Murad Alam, MD
principal investigator · Northwestern University

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
Yes
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is completed, as verified in Jun 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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