Why do most people refer to dental anesthetic as Novocaine?

Habit. "Older" Americans will remember when all refrigerators were called "Frigidaire's," no matter who made them. These days, almost any digital video recorder is called a "TiVO," or you say you are "TiVO'ing" a program, no matter whose equipment you are using.

In the 50's, there was nothing else BUT "Novocaine," so the name stuck. I used to correct people who called that numbing stuff "Novocaine," but after maybe ten years, I got off that bandwagon. If someone had an actual reaction, I would tell them what I used, but otherwise, it's not worth it. I've even started to use the term "glue your crown on" when I'm at this site, just so people will understand what I mean.

Because it was used almost exclusively for a long time. Mostly it is Lidocaine now. And sometimes they throw in a couple of other drugs depending on the procedure and the patient. People get a numbing shot for dental work and because they had Novocaine before, they think that is what they are still getting.

So?

Novocaine used to be the most common local anesthetic used in dentistry. Now, more effective, cheaper substitutes like lidocaine and marcaine are more frequently used.

It is sort of like when folks call tissues Kleenex. Just what was there first. Novocaine and other "caines" are sometimes lumped together as Novocaine since that is what used to be used. Just a habit.

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probably because it was one of the original local infiltration anaesthetics.

Since it has a short duration other local infiltration anaesthetics are now used with a longer duration, such as Lignocaine, mepivicaine and prilocaine

but Novacaine was the first of this type

That is what was originally used and so the name stuck. If you have a headache and ask for aspirin you don't ALWAYS mean aspirin but the person you are asking knows what you mean.

It is a brand name that even the dentists use in talking to patients because they will recognize it as a pain killer.