PRODUCT:
Marcaine^®

SOURCE:
Cooke-Waite Anesthetics
Rochester, N.Y.
800-933-8031
kodakdentalsystems.com

It’s about time Marcaine^® gets a little love! I write a lot about how much I like Septocaine^® (Septodont; New Castle, Del.) because I use it in the Rapid Anesthesia Technique; however, that technique is for single mandibular molars or two adjacent mandibular molars. There are many cases, of course, that either still require lower blocks or are in the maxilla. Most of the cases I do are three to five crowns at a time, and the more teeth you prep the better the chance there will be more than one surprise you have to contend with, which always lengthens the treatment time. Marcaine gives you pulpal and soft tissue anesthesia that typically lasts two to three times longer than lidocaine — in many patients lasting up to seven hours. Typically on a larger case the patient will be with us for three to four hours, and I don’t want the local anesthetic to wear off on the drive home. We encourage the patient to take 800 mg of ibuprofen before leaving the office so that it kicks in as the Marcaine wears off.