Pain associated with vaso-occlusive crisis is the main cause of hospitalization in children with sickle cell disease. Recent studies have suggested that pain might have a neuropathic component. Lidocaine patches are commonly prescribed as a topical analgesic in adult neuropathic pain. This study reports the efficacy and safety of such treatment in 6 patients with sickle cell disease, aged 6-18 years, who had been hospitalized for vaso-occlusive crisis after failure of the standard analgesic treatment. These data have led to setting up a confirmatory phase II trial, which is currently underway.
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