Lidocaine-based teething gels put babies at risk of seizure or even death, and should be taken off pharmacy shelves, experts say.

The 0.5% and 0.66% gels applied to babies’ gums are sold in pharmacies, with stronger 2% formulations frequently compounded at the request of parents.

But there is virtually no evidence the gels work or that teething requires any analgesia, according to Dr Leanne Teoh, a dentist and lecturer at the University of Melbourne, and Dr Geraldine Moses (PhD), a consultant pharmacist at the Master Hospital in Brisbane.

Their literature review, published in the Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health last week, identified at least 10 international case reports linking gels to serious adverse events, such as seizures, including one case where a 13-month-old died (although this was back in 1986).