Oraqix Periodontal Anesthetic
DENTSPLY Pharmaceutical
Oraqix provides effective injection-free anesthesia for scaling and root planing.
DENTSPLY Pharmaceutical’s Oraqix (2.5% lidocaine, 2.5% prilocaine) is the only FDA-approved, needle-free anesthetic for scaling and root planing (SRP). The subgingival gel provides profound, rapid-onset anesthesia directly to the periodontal pocket without the need for injections. Because Oraqix is site-specific, multiple areas can be treated in a single visit.
Onset and Duration
Oraqix anesthetizes the desired site in 30 seconds, allowing treatment to begin almost immediately. Up to 5 doses can be applied to ensure effective anesthesia throughout the procedure. Because the effect lasts for just 20 minutes, patients can resume normal activities as soon as they leave the office.
Of the 9 dentists and 4 hygienists who evaluated Oraqix, 4 rated time to anesthesia onset as excellent, 7 rated it as very good, and 2 rated it as good. When asked about duration of anesthesia, 1 evaluator rated it as excellent, 8 rated it as very good, and 4 rated it as good. Three evaluators cited rapid onset as the feature they liked most and 1 hygienist identified anesthesia duration as “the only thing that could be improved.” One evaluator said, “If a patient is sensitive and a topical just isn’t cutting it, it works great…very fast onset.”
Ease of Use
Oraqix is applied like a liquid but sets as a gel, staying in place for effective absorption. The gel is applied on and under the gingival margin using the blunt-tipped applicator and can be reapplied if the anesthesia starts to wear off.
Ease of use and application was rated as excellent by 6 evaluators and as very good by 7. When asked what they’d like to see improved, 2 evaluators said it was difficult to see how much was dispensed, and 1 said it “didn’t seem to stay in pockets as well as I expected.”
Eight evaluators cited ease of application as the feature they liked most. “I don’t think it can be improved as far as application is concerned,” said 1 evaluator. “I love not having to wait for the dentist to numb my patient. For localized SRP, I can use Oraqix,” said a Florida hygienist who gave it an overall rating of excellent.
Patient Comfort
Oraqix has been shown to provide effective anesthesia in randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials. 1-4 The nonallergenic anesthetic is safe even for use on inflamed tissue.
Four evaluators rated patient comfort as excellent, 7 rated it as very good, and 2 rated it as good. One dentist cited “deepness of anesthesia” as a feature he’d like to see improved, and 3 evaluators called for an improvement in the taste. Five evaluators cited needle-free application as their favorite feature. “It’s great for patients who need help with soft-tissue manipulation but want to avoid needles,” said a dentist in practice for 30 years. A hygienist who called it “an excellent product…very well received,” also said patients “like the fact that we’re not giving an injection yet making them comfortable. It’s less intimidating… great idea!”
“Great patient acceptance and increases SRP acceptance,” said one hygienist. “Patients love not having to be stuck.”
Overall Satisfaction
Overall satisfaction with Oraqix was rated as excellent by 5 evaluators, as very good by 7, and as good by 1. Twelve evaluators said they would definitely or probably recommend and buy it. One dentist called it “a great product that we’ll incorporate into our practice,” and another called it “a very nice addition to the anesthetic armamentarium. It will become a permanent part of ours.”
References
1. Jeffcoat MK, Geurs NC, Magnusson I, et al. Intrapocket anesthesia for scaling and root planing: result of a double-blind multicenter trial using lidocaine prilocaine dental gel. J Periodontal. 2001;72:895-900.
2. Donaldson D, Gelsky SC, Landry RG, et al. A placebo-controlled multicentered evaluation of an anesthetic gel (Oraqix) for periodontal therapy. J Clin Periodontal. 2003;30:171-175.
3. Magnusson I, Geurs NC, Harris PA, et al. Intrapocket anesthesia for scaling and root planing in pain-sensitive patients. J Periodontal. 2003;74:597-602.
4. van Steenberghe D, Bercy P, De Boever J, et al. Patient evaluation of a novel non-injectable anesthetic gel: a multicenter crossover study comparing the gel to infiltration anesthesia during scaling and root planing. J Periodontal. 2004;75:1471-1478.
