Michael Zweifler, a dentist out of Little Rock, Arkansas, has developed an injection prep tool that readies the gums before the needle goes in with a bit of ultrasonic vibration and a tad of topical gel. Once the shot is administered, the patient supposedly feels little to no pain.
From a press release sent to Medgadget:
ACCUPAL incorporates four known and proven pain-reducing theories into one economical, user-friendly device:
1. ACCUPAL incorporates the “Pain Gate” theory to energize the dental tissue in and around the site to be punctured by the needle.
2. ACCUPAL’s ultrasonic tissue stimulation disrupts the tissue injection site to allow standard topical gel to pre-condition the injection site, thus further reducing the needle’s pain-producing effects.
3. ACCUPAL vibrates the needle at the injection site. The pain-reducing effects of direct needle vibration are well documented as having a positive effect on injection comfort.
4. ACCUPAL ensures that the clinician inserts the needle bevel at its narrowest point, which provides the most minimally invasive path possible and reduced tissue damage to deliver a comfortable palatal injection every time.
Product page with a video demonstration of the device: Accupal