Is alcohol swab and anesthetic

Answer 1

There are alcohol swabs available with an anesthetic in it. I have seen two. One sold through Walmart and another sold through CVS pharmacies. The prices I have seen so far range between $2.00 per 100 pack and $3.25 per 80 pack. The anesthetic agent in the Walmart swabs seem to be benzocaine, not sure what the CVS product uses.

Most other swabs just contain an isopropal alcohol solution

Note: While the above is true. Alcohol seems to dry out the skin, which can make it more resistant to the lance stick. Many now feel that cleaning the fingers with a warm soapy solution achieves the antiseptic effect and softens the stick area at the same time making it more comfortable to get blood for testing. Shaking the hands down seems to also help the process.

At any rate, avoid the pads of the fingers and use area just to the sides of the finger pads for best results..