Device blocks the pain of shots

An innovative device has arrived on the Australian market to help address fear of injections. ShotBlocker — a patented device for blocking needle pain signals — is a non-invasive solution that has been shown to reduce or remove pain in 93.2% of users at half the cost of topical freezing sprays and anaesthetic creams.^*

Designed by a paediatrician, ShotBlocker works through a novel application of the gate control theory of pain management. It is a plastic, C-shaped device with small blunt contact points on its back. When pressed firmly against the skin at the injection site, the device saturates the sensory nerves, closing the gating mechanism in the spinal cord that controls the transmission of pain impulses to the brain. The device is easy to use and can bring comfort to users of all ages with immediate effect, with no skin damage, side effects or contraindications.

A fear of needles often starts in childhood — in many cases due to a medical experience that equates health care with pain or fear. As many as one in 10 people suffers from trypanophobia, an extreme fear of medical procedures involving injections or hypodermic needles. Of these, up to one in five avoids medical treatment and could miss out on urgent care. By preventing pain and alleviating the anxiety around injections, the device can help to eliminate children’s negative experiences with injections and provide an opportunity for patients with trypanophobia to overcome it.

ShotBlocker has been successfully used in the USA and Europe, and is now available in Australia and New Zealand. It can be used for or all intramuscular or subcutaneous injections — including immunisations and minor injections, such as allergy shots or insulin — at nearly any site on the body.

ShotBlocker is produced by Bionix Medical Technologies and will be exclusively distributed in Australia and New Zealand by Ecomed.

*A study on the efficacy of ShotBlocker found that 93.2% of those with ShotBlocker experienced mild to no pain compared to 51.7% of those without ShotBlocker.