Please activate JavaScript!
Please install Adobe Flash Player, click here for download

today Chicago Midwinter Meeting Feb. 21, 2014

exhibitors 15Chicago Midwinter Meeting — Feb. 21, 2014 Ad By Steven G. Goldberg, DDS n The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as, “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage.” As dentists, it is our great fortune to have acquired the necessary skills to helpalleviatethepainofthosewhoare suffering. Isn’t it ironic that the begin- ning of each dental procedure to allevi- ate pain begins with a needle injection causing tissue damage resulting in additional pain? How injections cause pain • Transduction: A needle injection of local anesthetic becomes a noxious stimulus as it pierces the oral mucosa, causingtissuedamageaswellastissue distention and tearing with the sub- mucosal deposition of anesthetic solu- tion. Nociceptors, specialized primary sensory neurons located under the surface of oral tissues, encode this nox- ious stimuli, converting it into nerve impulses known as action potentials. • Conduction: The impulses travel along A-delta and C nerve fibers to the spinal cord. It is in the dorsal horn of thespinalcordwhereitundergoessyn- aptic transmission and then continues on to the brain. Note: In the case of oro- facial pain, the signal passes through the trigeminal ganglion and then on to the brain. • Perception: Once in the thalamus, nerve impulses are directed to the somatosensorycortexofthebrain.This is where the occurrence of tissue dam- age is perceived as pain, emotionally processed and acted upon, a process known as nociception. The Gate Control Theory Thanks to the work of Drs. Ronald Melzack and Patrick Wall in 1965, we know that there is a “Gating” mecha- nism located in synapses within the dorsal horn of the spinal cord and simi- larly in the trigeminal ganglion. This “gate” can either block pain signals or permit them to travel to the brain. When a counter-stimulation (in this case, vibration) is applied in close proximityduringapainfuloccurrence (e.g., a dental injection), the sensation ofvibrationreachesthesensoryareaof the brain first, resulting in a closure of the synaptic pain gate to the sensation of pain — a process known as modula- tion. DentalVibe blocks injection pain I invented the DentalVibe to tap into the merits of the Gate Control Theory by effectively stimulating cutane- ous mechanoreceptors, Pacinian and Meissners’ Corpuscles, as a counter- stimulation to injection pain. It is a pat- ented, handheld, cordless device that delivers soothing, pulsed vibrations via a disposable, bifurcated, latex-free comfort tip to the site where an injec- tion is simultaneously administered. This specialized tip is laser cali- brated to a specific frequency and amplitude, sending the sensation of vibration to the brain along A-beta nerve fibers, effectively closing the pain gate. I have personally received the ulti- mate compliment from Melzack him- self, with gracious permission to pub- lish this quote: “Dear Dr. Goldberg, You’ve found an interesting and clinically useful way to diminish pain! Good for you! Best Wishes, Ronald Melzack” Breakthrough science of blocking pain Here in Chicago For more information on DentalVibe, stop by the booth, No. 4517. About the author Dr. Steven G. Goldberg, DDS, FADFE, gradu- ated from New York University’s College of Dentistry and has been in private prac- tice for more than two decades. He founded BingInnovationstobringtomarketthe DentalVibe Injection Comfort System, which is being used by dentists in pri- vate practice and in dental schools in the United States and in more than 25 other countries. Injection pain is perceived in the brain 5 Synaptic transmission. (Photo/ Provided by DentalVibe)

Overview