lidocaine injection

What is the most important information I should know about lidocaine injection?

What is lidocaine injection?

Lidocaine is a local anesthetic (numbing medication) that is used to numb an area of your body to help reduce pain or discomfort caused by invasive medical procedures such as surgery, needle punctures, or insertion of a catheter or breathing tube.

Lidocaine injection is sometimes used to treat irregular heart rhythms that may signal a possible heart attack.

Lidocaine injection is also given in an epidural (spinal block) to reduce the discomfort of contractions during labor.

Lidocaine injection may also be used for purposes not listed in this medication guide.

What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before receiving lidocaine injection?

• severe heart block;
• a heart rhythm disorder called Stokes-Adams syndrome (sudden slow heart beats that can cause you to faint); or
• a heart rhythm disorder called Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome (sudden fast heartbeats that can cause you to faint or become easily tired).

Tell your doctor if you have ever had:

• an allergy to corn products;
• liver disease;
• kidney disease;
• heart disease (unless you are being treated with lidocaine injection for a heart condition);
• coronary artery disease, circulation problems; or
• malignant hyperthermia.

Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.

How is lidocaine injection given?

A healthcare provider will give you this injection.

When used to treat heart rhythm problems, lidocaine is given as an infusion into a vein.

When used as a local anesthetic, lidocaine is injected through the skin directly into the body area to be numbed.

If you are being treated for irregular heart rhythm, your heart rate will be constantly monitored using an electrocardiograph or ECG (sometimes called an EKG). This will help your doctor determine how long to treat you with lidocaine injection.

What happens if I miss a dose?

Since lidocaine injection is used only when needed in a clinical setting, you are not likely to miss a dose.

What happens if I overdose?

What should I avoid after receiving lidocaine injection?

Avoid eating or chewing within 1 hour after lidocaine injection is used to numb your mouth or throat. You may have trouble swallowing which could lead to choking. You may also accidentally bite the inside of your mouth if you are still numb an hour after treatment with lidocaine injection.

What are the possible side effects of lidocaine injection?

• twitching, tremors, seizure (convulsions);
• a light-headed feeling, like you might pass out;
• slow heart rate, weak pulse, weak or shallow breathing;
• sudden feeling of heat, cold, or numbness;
• muscle stiffness and pain;
• weak or shallow breathing;
• blue appearance of the skin; or
• severe anxiety, unusual fear or uneasy feeling.

Common side effects may include:

• drowsiness, dizziness;
• nausea, vomiting;
• feeling hot or cold;
• confusion, ringing in your ears, blurred vision, double vision; or
• numbness in places where the medicine is accidentally applied.

This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

What other drugs will affect lidocaine injection?

Tell your doctor about all your other medicines, especially:

• cimetidine, fluvoxamine, nefazodone, St John's wort;
• antibiotic or antifungal medicine;
• antiviral medicine to treat hepatitis or HIV/AIDS;
• heart or blood pressure medicine --amiodarone, digoxin, nicardipine, procainamide, propranolol;
• seizure medicine --carbamazepine, phenytoin; or
• tuberculosis medicine --isoniazid, rifampin.

This list is not complete. Other drugs may affect lidocaine, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal products. Not all possible drug interactions are listed here.

Where can I get more information?

Your doctor or pharmacist can provide more information about lidocaine injection.

Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children, never share your medicines with others, and use this medication only for the indication prescribed.

Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Cerner Multum, Inc. ('Multum') is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Multum information has been compiled for use by healthcare practitioners and consumers in the United States and therefore Multum does not warrant that uses outside of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Multum's drug information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. Multum's drug information is an informational resource designed to assist licensed healthcare practitioners in caring for their patients and/or to serve consumers viewing this service as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners. The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any given patient. Multum does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information Multum provides. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.

Copyright 1996-2023 Cerner Multum, Inc. Version: 4.01. Revision date: 9/23/2020.