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It's estimated that 25% of adults in the UK delay seeking help for a painful dental condition due to dental anxiety.
Vibraject, the small vibrating device which attaches to a dental syringe and removes or reduces the pain of an injection, is currently catching on in the dental profession.With nearly 100 dental practices using Vibraject in the UK, a consumer campaign is now underway to raise awareness.It includes patient and dentist testimonials as well as a list of dental practices across the country which have Vibraject.

Dentists, therapists and hygienists who invest in Vibraject are given stickers so they can proclaim and promote their commitment to pain-free dentistry with a 'Vibraject here' sign.

It's estimated that 25% of adults in the UK delay seeking help for a painful dental condition due to dental anxiety.1  For many, the anxiety is caused by needle phobia.  When Vibraject is used to give a local anaesthetic, many patients don't even know they have had an injection.It offers huge emotional relief to the needle phobic and unusually pain sensitive.

It works because  – a small barrel which is attached to a regular syringe - makes the needle vibrate and this sensation reaches the brain first, masking the feeling of pain. This conforms with the well-established Gate Control Theory of Pain.

Vibraject dentists say it helps enormously with treatment as they know their patients are comfortable and the feedback they receive is overwhelmingly positive – particularly from children who have nicknamed it 'The Buzzy Thing'.

It has the potential for the next generation of children to view dental treatment very differently to their parents by eliminating the fear of injections.

Dr Jos Stevenson, principal dentist at Maryport Dental Care Centre, says: 'After I had used Vibraject, the patient asked me: 'When do you give me the injection?' I have used it on virtually every single patient since then. I think it's fantastic.'

Murray Hawkins, principal of Winning Smiles in Gillingham, Dorset, is the UK distributor. He decided to market the product to colleagues after he saw the reaction of his patients to Vibraject. He said: 'They hear the buzzing sound, they feel the vibration but they do not feel the injection.'