What is replacing novacaine used to numb you at the dentist?

Novacaine has not been the drug of choice for dental treatment for many decades. Several superior local anesthetics have been developed since novacaine was used. Novacaine has fallen out of use due to its relatively high incidence of allergic reactions.

Today, lidocaine is considered the gold standard against which all other local anesthetics are compared.

Today many dentists use a combination of local anesthetics such as Septocaine (fast acting) and lidocaine (long lasting).

For patients who have heart conditions or are highly susceptible to epinephrine (an ingredient in many local anesthetics) the most common alternative is mepivicaine 3% w/o epinephrine.

The term 'novacaine' is often used with patients (incorrectly) to mean local anesthetic of any kind, much like 'Kleenex' is used to mean facial tissue.