Techniques recommended to minimize the pain of injection include the following: Using a small needle (a 27-gauge needle is best, and a 25-gauge is acceptable; a 30-gauge may be too flimsy) Giving the injection slowly Giving the injection into the subcutaneous plane instead of intradermally Buffering lidocaine with 8.4% sodium bicarbonate, raising the pH from 4.2 to 7.4 (for example, at ratios of lidocaine to sodium bicarbonate that can range from 3: 1 to 9: 1) (NOTE: Buffering decreases the shelf life of multidose lidocaine vials, and buffering is less effective for bupivacaine.)