Local Anesthetics in Dentistry – Newer Methods of Delivery

Second Lai Kee Yen; Neelakantan Prasanna

Second Lai Kee Yen Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Saveetha University, Chennai - 600077, Tamil Nadu, India
Neelakantan Prasanna Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Saveetha University, Chennai - 600077, Tamil Nadu, India

Keywords: local anaesthesia, pain, electronic dental anaesthesia, transdermal patch, DentiPatch, iontophoresis, computer controlled delivery, EMLA, Wand, intraosseous

Abstract

Fear of pain is the most common reason for patients to defer dental treatment. Most dental procedures employ administration of local anaesthesia, but this fear of a “needle prick” and the pain associated with the same needs to be offset by the dental practitioner. Technological innovations have provided with methods of delivering local anaesthesia painlessly. This increases patient comfort, compliance and the trust they have in the dentist. This review discusses the newer methods of delivering painless local anaesthesia in the oral cavity.