Reducing Immunization Discomfort In Children

Reducing immunization discomfort in 4- to 6-year-old children: a randomized clinical trial.

A clinical trial evaluated 41 children, 4 to 6 years of age, who were given 3 standard prekindergarten immunizations; 21 were assigned randomly to an office routine control group, whereas 20 received a multifaceted, discomfort-reducing intervention. The intervention added verbal suggestions of diminished sensation and a visual focusing activity to the use of ethyl chloride, an established pain-reducing measure. The distraction materials used for the intervention consisted of topical ethyl chloride spray, an improvised, plastic, multipronged arm gripper, and a vibrating instrument descending on the contralateral arm, which provided the focusing task and visual distraction.

the intervention group showed highly significant reductions in pain and discomfort, compared with the control group. In conclusion, this multifaceted distraction intervention reduced significantly the pain and discomfort of childhood immunizations in children 4 to 6 years of age.

Pediatrics. 2009 Aug;124(2):e203-9. Epub 2009 Jul 13