Dental work that won't give patients the needle

SITTING in the dentist's chair, inwardly screaming for mercy as the needle advances, could soon be a thing of the past.

For Dr Biju Krishnan, a cosmetic dentist, is the first in Scotland to offer a treatment using a specially-engineered needle and injection technique ensuring that patients feel only a slight vibration. The QuickSleeper anaesthetic and needle can also be targeted at specific nerves, spelling an end to numb tongues, lips or cheeks.

A single injection can freeze the nerves around up to eight teeth and does away with multiple jabs.

Dr Krishnan, who set up the Edinburgh-based Lubiju practice, expects the new anaesthetic to be in demand from people who normally avoid dental treatment because of needle phobias.

"This really is the kind of exciting new technology which dentists have been dreaming about for decades, so we are proud to be at the forefront of introducing it in Scotland.

"The QuickSleeper system has been developed over ten years and is a huge leap forward. Bone hardly has any nerve endings so patients feel nothing. One of the biggest obstacles we face is working with patients who have a deep-rooted fear of injections. Being able to offer a genuinely pain-free anaesthetic is groundbreaking."

Paul McPherson, of General Medical, the UK distributor for QuickSleeper, said: "For many people who go to the dentist, what they most fear is the injection. Our new approach to anaesthetics makes the injection painless, so we believe it will help both patients and dentists.

"QuickSleeper is great for kids and it's very quick, which means the dentist can save a lot of time and potentially treat more patients."

Dr Krishnan and fellow Dundee University graduate Dr Lubino do Rego opened their clinic in March 2009, concentrating on developing emerging hi-tech cosmetic dentistry techniques.

The clinic also offers the services of a hypnotherapist who can help patients relax and address phobias.