Topical anesthetics 

Topical anesthetics are medicines that numb and reduce the sensation of pain in the area to which they are applied. They are available as creams, ointments, solutions, eye drops, gels or sprays and may be applied to areas such as the skin, inside the mouth or throat, in the nose, or in the eyes.

Topical anesthetics may be applied to the skin to relieve pain caused by sunburn or other minor burns, insect bites, minor cuts, or before dressing changes when wounds are extensive. They may also be used prior to vaccination or any other procedure that requires insertion of a needle.

Various topical anesthetic agents available for use are eutectic mixture of local anesthetics, ELA-max, lidocaine, epinephrine, tetracaine, bupivanor, 4% tetracaine, benzocaine, proparacaine, Betacaine-LA, topicaine, lidoderm, S-caine patch™ and local anesthetic peel.

A topical analgesic medication is one applied to body surfaces such as the skin or mucous membranes to treat painful ailments; they are either rubbed onto the skin or made into patches or plasters that are stuck onto the skin.

Many synthetic local anesthetics are available, such as procaine (trade name Novocain), lidocaine, and tetracaine. It is the convention to end the names of local anesthetics with -caine, after cocaine. In general, they are secondary or tertiary amines linked to aromatic groups by an ester or amide linkage.