A Phase 4 interventional study of Lidocaine-Adrenaline-Tetracaine (LAT) Gel and Lidocaine infiltration in Lacerations, Wound Repair and Acute Traumatic Wounds, sponsored by Vrije Universiteit Brussel. Completed at 1 site in Belgium. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-03-18.
Sponsored by Vrije Universiteit Brussel · Phase 4, Interventional, and Treatment
This prospective comparative study evaluates pain experience in adult patients undergoing laceration repair in the emergency department using either topical lidocaine-adrenaline-tetracaine (LAT) gel or lidocaine infiltration as local anaesthesia. Lidocaine infiltration is the standard anaesthetic technique for wound repair but can cause significant pain during injection. LAT gel is a needle-free topical anaesthetic that is widely used in paediatric patients but has been less studied in adults.
Adult patients presenting with simple lacerations requiring suturing are allocated to receive either LAT gel or lidocaine infiltration according to the clinical judgement of the treating physician. Pain is measured using a visual analogue scale (VAS) during anaesthetic administration, during testing of anaesthetic effectiveness, and during suturing. Additional variables include wound characteristics, patient characteristics, and the need for additional anaesthesia. The study aims to evaluate whether LAT gel provides comparable pain control while reducing pain during anaesthetic administration.
Pain management is an important component of wound treatment in the emergency department. Local anaesthesia is routinely required for laceration repair, most commonly using infiltrative anaesthesia with lidocaine. Although effective, lidocaine infiltration can cause significant discomfort due to the injection itself and may increase patient anxiety. In addition, infiltration can sometimes distort tissue and potentially complicate the suturing procedure. Alternative approaches that reduce pain during anaesthetic administration may therefore improve patient comfort during wound management.
Topical anaesthesia using lidocaine-adrenaline-tetracaine (LAT) gel represents a needle-free alternative to infiltrative anaesthesia. LAT gel is commonly used in paediatric patients and has demonstrated effectiveness in reducing pain during laceration repair. However, evidence regarding its use in adult patients remains limited. Evaluating the effectiveness of LAT gel in adults may help determine whether it can be used more broadly as an alternative to injection-based anaesthesia in the emergency department.
This prospective comparative study includes adult patients presenting to the emergency department of Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel with simple lacerations requiring suturing. Patients receive either LAT gel or lidocaine infiltration as local anaesthesia according to the clinical judgement of the attending physician. Pain experience is measured using a visual analogue scale (VAS) during anaesthetic administration, during testing of anaesthetic adequacy, and during suturing. Additional variables recorded include patient characteristics, wound characteristics, suturing characteristics, the need for additional anaesthesia, and procedure-related complications. The aim of the study is to compare pain experience between both anaesthetic techniques and to assess whether LAT gel may represent a suitable alternative for selected adult lacerations.
174 studies on the registry are indexed under Lacerations; 43 are open to participants now.
This study's enrollment of 70 is close to the median of 65 across 128 interventional studies indexed under Lacerations.
Browse Lacerations studies →Vrije Universiteit Brussel is the lead sponsor of 158 studies on the registry; 43 are open to participants now.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
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.
Exclusion Criteria:
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.
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.
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.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Patients receive topical lidocaine-adrenaline-tetracaine (LAT) gel applied directly into the wound prior to suturing.
Drug: Lidocaine-Adrenaline-Tetracaine (LAT) Gel
Patients receive infiltrative local anaesthesia prior to suturing.
Drug: Lidocaine infiltration
LAT gel (lidocaine 4%, adrenaline 0.1%, tetracaine 0.5%) is applied directly into the wound at a dose of approximately 0.5 mL per centimetre of wound length and covered with an occlusive dressing for 30 minutes prior to suturing.
Subcutaneous infiltration of lidocaine 1% is administered locally around the wound approximately 5 minutes prior to suturing.
Pain during suturing
Pain experienced during wound suturing measured using a 100 mm visual analogue scale (VAS).
Time frame: During suturing procedure
Pain during anaesthetic administration
Pain experienced during administration of the anaesthetic (LAT gel application or lidocaine infiltration) measured using a visual analogue scale (VAS).
Time frame: At time of anaesthetic administration
Pain during testing of anaesthetic effectiveness
Pain experienced during testing of anaesthetic adequacy using a needle prick, measured using a visual analogue scale (VAS).
Time frame: After waiting period for anaesthesia (30 minutes LAT gel / 5 minutes lidocaine)
Need for additional anaesthesia
Number of patients requiring additional lidocaine infiltration due to insufficient anaesthetic effect.
Time frame: During wound preparation prior to suturing
Wound characteristics
Description of wound location and wound length.
Time frame: At time of emergency department presentation
PDFs hosted by the registry, ClinicalTrials.gov.
Plan to share: Yes — Individual participant data that underlie the results reported in this study, after de-identification, may be shared upon reasonable request. Shared data may include demographic characteristics, wound characteristics, treatment allocation, and pain scores measured using the visual analogue scale (VAS).
Supporting information: Study protocol, Statistical analysis plan, Informed consent form, Clinical study report
Time frame: Data will be available beginning 6 months following publication of the study results and will remain available for up to 5 years after publication.
Access criteria: Data will be available to researchers who provide a methodologically sound proposal for secondary analyses. Proposals should be directed to the corresponding author. Access will be granted after review and approval by the study investigators and the institutional review board when required. Data will be shared in a de-identified format in accordance with institutional and data protection regulations.
Ran from Apr 2021 to primary completion in May 2021, 1 month.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
This study is completed, as verified in Mar 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
Get an email when the registry record changes — status, dates, results — or when someone posts here.
Sign in to followQuestions and observations about this study, from anyone following it. Not medical advice, and not a channel to the study team — their contact details are on the registry record.
Sign in to join the discussion. Reading takes no account; posting does. You choose a display name, and a pseudonym is the default.
Nothing here yet. If you are running this trial, taking part in it, or weighing whether to, this is the place to say so.