The effect of epinephrine in local anesthetic solutions on the blood pressure of young normotensive females following dental infiltrations.

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the effect of epinephrine in local anesthetic solutions on systolic and diastolic blood pressures. Design: A buccal infiltration injection of 1.8 ml lignocaine 2% with epinephrine 1:100,000 (18 ug) was administered to normotensive female dental students in conjunction with periodic blood pressure measurements lasting until 15 minutes after the injection. Setting: College of dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Results: There was a statistically significant fall in both the systolic and diastolic pressures starting immediately after removal of the needle from the tissues; the systolic pressure continued to fall for ten minutes and the diastolic pressure for seven minutes, after which they started to rise again. Conclusion: Local anesthetics that contain epinephrine lower the systolic and diastolic blood pressures of normotensive patients after dental infiltrations.