Needle-Free Anesthesia in Dental Healthcare

Nayana Gowda, Emory University

Introduction 

Odontophobia, the fear of going to dentists or dental fear, is estimated to affect thirty-six percent of people in the United States, among which twelve percent suffer from intense dental fear. This phobia can lead to a significant reduction in dental attendance and induce harmful effects on an individual’s oral health. Generally speaking, dental anxiety can occur as a result of an individual’s past negative encounters with medications and anesthetic techniques, notably including the use of needles. Needle anxiety, in particular, which can strongly coincide in individuals with dental anxiety, causes one to refrain from medical treatment and drug therapies due to avoidance behavior (Sokolowski, 2010). As a result, needle-free dental anesthesia has emerged as a favorable and efficient alternative to the conventional injection anesthesia system. 

New Treatments

In one particular study, participants older than the age of eighteen who needed bilateral extractions in the maxilla agreed to use topical anesthesia (Articaine HCl) supplied through a needle-free injection device (Brunton, 2022). This needle-free injection, controlled by an electric motor in a control-amplifier box, along with the conventional needle anesthesia, were randomly placed in the right or left side of the maxilla.

After measuring the quantity of anesthetic given, researchers then used the Corah Dental Anxiety Scale and Index of Dental Anxiety and Fear to measure the level of each patients’ anxiety. Although average discomfort scores for both delivery methods were low (1.38-2.13 for needle free, 1.74-2.38 for conventional) the average scores of discomfort were lower for the needle-free method than that of the conventional injection technique. 

These results not only demonstrate reduced dental anxiety but the considerable potential in developing and increasing access to healthcare to patients without access to routine dental checkups due to dental anxiety. Routine checkups are especially crucial to detect oral diseases and avoid the discomfort and additional costs expected to treat them. Additionally, use of needles in anesthesia requires training and caution due to the higher technique sensitivity in conventional needle anesthesia (Alameeri, 2022). Methods such as jet injection technology, which uses automated energy to force liquid out without a needle and doesn’t require definite practices to manage the needle at various angles, are less dangerous and require less caution. Jet injection also uses restricted dosage administration to control the amount of anesthesia being given, lessening the chances of overdosing especially for patients with systemic disorders. Although needleless injection is more expensive and in general requires more anesthesia than conventional needle techniques, it uses a faster channel and offers an extremely beneficial alternative to those who fear needles. 

What’s Next
It’s extremely important that dental practices carefully evaluate various needs and symptoms to find the right method of anesthetic delivery to use for their patients. Despite that needleless anesthesia also has limitations, in that its uses are more limited to shorter surgical procedures and can cause more overall pain in extractions than conventional anesthesia, its applications should be further studied. Needle-free dental anesthesia shows much promise in the field of healthcare, and we can find new ways to improve its design. Moreover, we must emphasize research on the potency of its practice to address the needs of patients with needle anxiety and increase access to dental care.