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A Randomized Controlled Trial Of The Shotblocker® For Children’S Immunization Distress, Jean E. Cobb, Lindsey L. Cohen

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objectives: Vaccinations protect children against deadly diseases and approximately 30 immunizations are recommended for children by 6 years of age. However, immunization injections cause negative short- and long-term consequences for children. The Gate Control Theory of Pain suggests that physical interventions (e.g., rubbing the site) may be helpful, but they are not well validated for children’s acute pain. This randomized trial examined the effectiveness of the ShotBlocker®, a physical intervention designed to decrease children’s injection pain.

Methods: Participants included 89 4- to 12-year-old children receiving immunizations at a pediatric practice. Participants were randomized to ShotBlocker®, placebo control, or typical care …

A Randomized Clinical Trial Of Vapocoolant For Pediatric Immunization Pain Relief, Lindsey L. Cohen, Jill E. Maclaren, Melissa Demore, Beverly Fortson, Abby Friedman, Crystal S. Lim, Balram Gangaram

Psychology Faculty Publications

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effectiveness of vapocoolant for preschoolers’ immunization injection pain relief.

STUDY DESIGN: 57 4- to 6-year-old children were randomized to vapocoolant alone or typical care conditions. Pain was measured at baseline and at injection via self-report, caregiver-report, nurse-report, and an observational scale.

RESULTS: Self-report suggested that children in the vapocoolant alone condition demonstrated stronger increases in pain from baseline to injection than typical care. All other measures showed significant increases in pain from baseline to injection, but none indicted treatment effects.

CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with prior studies, vapocoolant might not be …