Modern dental techniques have eliminated much of the pain associated with a trip to the dentist, but one remains — the dreaded shot of local anesthetic. Now that, too, may soon be a thing of the past, as scientists say that a common anesthetic can be administered through the nose as a nasal spray or nose drops where it travels up the main nerve in the face and collects in the teeth, jaw, and other structures of the mouth.
The discovery could lead to a host of new intranasal drugs that could be noninvasive treatments for dental pain, migraine, severe facial pain, and other conditions, says William H. Frey II, Ph.D. of Regions Hospital in St. Paul, Minn.
Until now, scientists never checked to see if drugs that were administered through the nose and passed through the trigeminal nerve, which brings feelings to the face, nose, and mouth, might reach the teeth and gums.
Researcher Neil Johnson found that Xylocaine or lidocaine traveled down the trigeminal nerve when sprayed into the mouths of rats, and collected in teeth, jaws, and mouths at levels 20 times higher than those in the blood or brain.
Want to keep teeth strong and healthy and not have to worry about anesthetics? WebMD and About.com offer these six tips:
• Don't use your teeth to open bags of chips, chomp ice, or to loosen knots.
• Gently brush your teeth with a "soft" toothbrush twice a day.
• Throw away a brush after three months.
• Brush teeth after eating sugar. If you can't brush, chew sugarless gum.
• Floss every day.
• Visit your dentist twice a year.
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