Effect of Repeated Doses of Sucrose during Heel Stick Procedure in Preterm Neonates

The purpose of this randomized clinical trial was to test the efficacy of repeated versus single dose sucrose to decrease pain from routine heel stick procedures in preterm neonates. Infants (n = 48) in the first week of life with a mean gestational age of 31 weeks received 0.05 ml of 24% sucrose solution or sterile water by mouth (1) 2 min prior to actual lancing of the heel; (2) just prior to lancing, and (3) 2 min after lancing. The single-dose group received sucrose for the first dose and water for the second and third dose; the repeated-dose group received sucrose three times, and the placebo group received only water. The Premature Infant Pain Profile (PIPP) scores were obtained for five 30-second blocks from lancing. Both sucrose groups had lower PIPP scores (single sucrose pain scores, 6.8–8.2, p = 0.07; repeated sucrose pain scores, 5.3–6.2, p < 0.01) than water (pain scores 7.9–9.1), and in the last block, the repeated dose had lower scores than the single dose (6.2 vs. 8.2, p < 0.05).