Cetacaine

Cetacaine is a combination medication containing three different local anesthetics: benzocaine, butamben, and tetracaine. All three medications temporarily numb an area of your body by blocking your nerves from sending pain messages to the brain. Cetacaine comes as a topical gel, spray, and solution. It's used for certain surgeries and procedures involving the ear, nose, mouth, throat, bronchi (tubes that carry air to your lungs), esophagus (tube that connects your throat to your stomach), vagina, or rectum. The spray can also be used to control gagging during oral procedures. Because of certain risks, this medication can't be used in children under 2 years old.

Your provider will apply a small amount of Cetacaine directly to the area where pain control is needed. A trained healthcare provider must apply the medication to the area in a healthcare setting.

It typically only takes about 30 seconds for Cetacaine to numb the area it was applied to. The numbing effect lasts around 30 to 60 minutes.

The most common side effect of Cetacaine is skin irritation with redness and itching, which could potentially lead to blistering and oozing. This reaction is more likely to occur if you need Cetacaine regularly or for a long period of time. This is unlikely since Cetacaine is typically only administered for a short time during certain procedures.