Side effects of Emla patches

Most side effects of Emla patches occur directly at the point of application. Common side effects, i.e. every tenth to one hundredth child is affected, are skin changes, paleness at the application site and slight edema, like an insect bite. Occasionally, i.e. less than one percent, there are allergic reactions with itching and burning at the application site and increased blood circulation with a feeling of warmth in the area of the patch.

In rare cases, a severe allergic reaction develops with life-threatening breathing difficulties and circulatory shock. This is to be expected in less than one in a thousand children. Just as rare is the blood count change methemoglobinemia.

This is particularly common in newborns and occurs more frequently in premature babies, which is why Emla Patch should not be used in premature babies before 37 weeks of pregnancy. Prolonged use of Emla-Patch, as in children with the skin disease atopic dermatitis, may result in bleeding into the subcutaneous tissue. In the event of more severe side effects, Emla-Patch should be removed directly and not used in subsequent procedures.

Treatment with other drugs containing lidocaine should also be avoided. Since Emla patches can trigger methemoglobinemia in rare cases, they should not be combined with other drugs that can also trigger such a blood change. These include sulfonamides, nitrofurantoin, phenytoin and phenobarbital. Cimetidine and beta-blockers can slow down the breakdown of lidocaine and thus lead to high levels of active ingredients in the tissue when used several times. This can lead to symptoms of poisoning.However, the one-time application of Emla plasters is completely uncritical in this case.

When should the patch not be used?

The main contraindication to the use of Emla patches is hypersensitivity or allergy to the components lidocaine, prilocaine and similar local anaesthetics. Emla-Patch should also not be applied to bleeding, open wounds, as the study situation is insufficient for this. Emla Patch should be used with caution in the presence of methemoglobinemia or glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency. However, this is not a criterion for exclusion. In atopic dermatitis, the duration of application should be shortened.