12.

Sucrose (12%) compared with water for pain associated with venipuncture
Patient or population: neonates with pain associated with venipuncture Settings: hospital Intervention: sucrose (12%) Comparison: water
Outcomes	Illustrative comparative risks* (95% CI)		No of participants (studies)	Quality of the evidence (GRADE)	Comments
	Assumed risk	Corresponding risk
	Water	Sucrose (12%)
NIPS score in term and preterm infants Range of scale 0‐7 A lower score = less pain Lawrence 1993	The mean NIPS score was 3.8 in the water group	The mean NIPS score in the sucrose group was lower than in the water group: 0.90 (95% CI ‐1.81 to 0.01)	111 (1)	⊕⊕⊕⊝ moderate	Bias: it is uncertain if outcome assessors were blinded Consistency: as this was a single study a rating of consistency was N/A Precision: this study had a relatively large sample size with a narrow 95% CI (no concerns about precision) Directness: the study was conducted in the target population ‐ no concerns about indirectness
*The basis for the assumed risk was 'The mean NIPS score in the control group according to the value reported in the Assumed risk column. The corresponding risk was the mean in the intervention group for the NIPS score with its 95% CI'. CI: confidence interval; N/A: not applicable; NIPS: Neonatal Infant Pain Scale
GRADE Working Group grades of evidence High quality: Further research is very unlikely to change our confidence in the estimate of effect. Moderate quality: Further research is likely to have an important impact on our confidence in the estimate of effect and may change the estimate. Low quality: Further research is very likely to have an important impact on our confidence in the estimate of effect and is likely to change the estimate. Very low quality: We are very uncertain about the estimate.