Articaine Versus Bupivacaine/Lidocaine for Sub-Tenon s Anaesthesia in Cataract Surgery: A Comparative Study

The efficacy and safety of articaine 2% were compared with a mixture of lidocaine 2% and bupivacaine 0.5% in sub- Tenon s anaesthesia for cataract extraction. The study included 40 patients randomly allocated to one of the two groups.Sub-Tenon s anaesthesia using articaine 2% resulted in a more rapid onset of motor block in comparison with bupivacaine lidocaine mixture (p = 0.031). Mean time to readiness for surgery was also lower (p = 0.0076).We concluded that articaine 2% is a suitable alternative to the traditional mixture of bupivacaine 0.5%/lidocaine 2%. It has a more rapid onset of action and a wider distribution within the orbital muscle cone. It has a very low systemic toxicity and does not require the addition of epinephrine.