Efficacy of diphenhydramine hydrochloride for local anesthesia before oral surgery

The Anesthetic Efficacy of Diphenhydramine and the Combination Diphenhydramine/Lidocaine for the Inferior Alveolar Nerve Block

“…However, a patient may present to the practice with an allergy to several types of local anesthetics or recalls a severe allergic reaction to an unknown anesthetic agent. Previous authors have advocated the use of diphenhydramine for patients allergic to standard local anesthetics (1)(2)(3)(4).…”

“…The use of the antihistamine diphenhydramine in dentistry has been studied in extraction models by a number of authors (1)(2)(3)(4)(5). When compared with a lidocaine or prilocaine solution, diphenhydramine was less effective (1)(2)(3)(4)(5).…”

“…When compared with a lidocaine or prilocaine solution, diphenhydramine was less effective (1)(2)(3)(4)(5). Its use in medicine for minor laceration repair has shown it was either less effective or equivalent to a lidocaine solution (6 -10).…”

Injectable Diphenhydramine Used as Anaesthetic for Wide Local Excision With Flap Closure

“…It is readily available, inexpensive, and effective in achieving anaesthesia in most people within 5 minutes. 2,3 Reported lengths in the duration of anaesthesia are 15 minutes to 3 hours. 2,3…”

Drug Allergies and Implications for Dental Practice

“…Diphenhydramine (Benadryl) is an antihistamine that has demonstrated clinical efficacy in blocking sodium channels in peripheral nerves. [16][17][18][19] It is not as effective as traditional local anesthetics, but has been used successfully following infiltration; evidence for efficacy following nerve block is less convincing. Diphenhydramine is very irritating to tissues and must be used as a 1% (10 mg/ mL) concentration when used for this purpose.…”