Alright…a needle has a sharp point and it will prick no matter what anyone says. However, there is a difference between injections that we used to give years ago and the ones we give now. The difference is that today’s needles don’t hurt as much! The reasons are described below:
1. Topical Anaesthetic – Before sticking you with anything, we make sure that place some of the “magic jelly” on the gums to make the gums go numb before anything touches them. What a concept!
2. Finer Gauge Needles – We use finer needles than used to be available years ago. Also, technological advancement in material sciences has resulted in a much gentler and smoother surface of the actual needle that doesn’t bite as much.
3. Slow and Steady Wins the Race – Ok…not every dentist does this…but they should. We know that injecting slowly is much more comfortable than quickly jabbing someone and squeezing everything out in twenty seconds. In our office, the average injection takes around two minutes but most people find that that is a good tradeoff for not feeling too uncomfortable.
4. Vibraject – This is a device that causes the needle to vibrate at a particular frequency. Nerve cells respond to vibration stimulus faster than they do to painful stimulus. With Vibraject, nerve cells get tricked into thinking that the gentle dentist (me) is causing vibration and send that message to the brain. By the time the cells have recharged and are ready to convey more messages the area is already starting to go numb.
There you have it. Completely pain-free injections are impossible but with today’s technologies, there is no reason why injections have to be as uncomfortable as they used to be in the past. If you would like to experience first-hand the modern painless injection, let us know.