What Is Benzocaine?

Possible Side Effects

This medication appears to have a variety of possible side effects. The most common ones that patients may deal with are itching, stinging, and burning. This is typically around the application site. Patients may also experience dry skin, flaky skin, redness, and tenderness. Although these side effects can be mild, others may be fairly serious. This seems to include methemoglobinemia, a serious condition that can involve fatal oxygen starvation in some of the body's tissues. It may be possible for patients to experience this after one use. However, it seems to be more common after several applications. Symptoms of this condition may occur from a few minutes after application to a few hours later.

There also appears to be a few side effects that require emergency medical attention. These side effects include lightheadedness, shortness of breath, and a fast heartbeat. Other serious side effects may include lethargy, off-color skin and lips, as well as allergic reaction symptoms. Patients may need to stop using this medication immediately if they see swelling, blistering, or severe burning. If any of these happen, patients may want to call their doctor immediately.

Get some details on precautions patients may need to consider with this medication next.

Precautions To Consider

Individuals may want to review many aspects of their health with their doctor before using this medication. This may include denoting any reactions to benzocaine or similar medicines in the past. A complete medical history may also be needed. Doctors should know if their patient has dealt with heart disease, blood issues, or breathing problems. Patients may also be asked about past infections in the area that may need this medication. As mentioned, this medication may be used during medical procedures. If this is the case, patients may need to review their list of current medications with their doctor beforehand.

Some reports seem to indicate that there can be some risk with using this medication while pregnant. Thus, women may want to talk about this with their doctor. There could also be risks related to breast milk, though there does not seem to be any studies on this. Either way, doctors may need to talk about this with their doctor as well.

Read about the potential medication interactions next.