The key difference between lidocaine and septocaine is that lidocaine is comparatively a weak anesthetic, whereas septocaine is a strong anesthetic.

Lidocaine and septocaine can be compared with each other according to their strength. This is because septocaine contains a thiophene ring rather than a benzene ring that occurs in lidocaine. Lidocaine is a type of local anesthetic that helps to numb the tissues of a specific area in the body. Septocaine is a prescription medication that is useful in treating the symptoms of local, infiltrate, or conductive anesthesia in dental procedures.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Lidocaine
3. What is Septocaine
4. Lidocaine vs Septocaine in Tabular Form
5. Summary – Lidocaine vs Septocaine

What is Lidocaine?

Lidocaine is a type of local anesthetic that helps to numb the tissues of a specific area in the body. We often use it as a regional anesthetic. Furthermore, the most common trade name for this compound is Xylocaine. The metabolism of this compound occurs in the liver. Its elimination half-life is about two hours, while the duration of action is around 10 to 20 minutes.

Moreover, the chemical formula of Lidocaine is C14H22N2O. The molar mass of the compound is 234.34 g/mol. The melting point of Lidocaine is 68 °C. When we use Lidocaine as a local anesthetic, the adverse effects are very rare.

What is Septocaine?

Septocaine is a prescription medication that is useful in treating the symptoms of local, infiltrate, or conductive anesthesia in dental procedures. It can be used alone or with other medications. Septocaine belongs to a class of drugs named local anesthetics.

There are some common side effects of septocaine, which include dizziness, muscle tremors, loss of skin color, headache, heart-throbbing, nausea, vomiting, nervousness, etc. However, there can be some serious side effects as well, which include weak or shallow breathing, slow heart rate, blurred vision, ringing in the ears, anxiety, confusion, etc. Generally, it is considered that this medication is safe and effective in children below 4 years.

The dose we should use depends on the occasion. For instance, for infiltration purposes, 0.5-2.5 mL of septocaine is used, while the volume we can use for oral surgery can range from 1.0 to 5.1 mL. These recommended doses only serve as a guide to the amount of anesthetic that is required for most routine procedures.

What is the Difference Between Lidocaine and Septocaine?

Lidocaine and septocaine can be compared with each other according to their strength. This is because septocaine contains a thiophene ring rather than a benzene ring that occurs in lidocaine. The key difference between lidocaine and septocaine is that lidocaine is comparatively a weak anesthetic, whereas septocaine is a strong anesthetic. Moreover, Lidocaine helps to numb the tissues of a specific area in the body, while septocaine is useful in treating the symptoms of local, infiltrate, or conductive anesthesia in dental procedures.

The below infographic presents the differences between lidocaine and septocaine in tabular form for side by side comparison.

Summary – Lidocaine vs Septocaine

Lidocaine is a type of local anesthetic that helps to numb the tissues of a specific area in the body. Septocaine is a prescription medication that is useful in treating the symptoms of local, infiltrate, or conductive anesthesia in dental procedures. The key difference between lidocaine and septocaine is that lidocaine is comparatively a weak anesthetic, whereas septocaine is a strong anesthetic.

Reference:

1. “Lidocaine Skin Cream or Ointment.” Cleveland Clinic.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Lidocaine (1)” By Intropin – Own work (CC BY 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia

2. “Articaine-3D-balls” By Jynto (talk) – Own work  This image was created with Discovery Studio Visualizer. (CC0) via Commons Wikimedia

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