COLUMBUS, Ohio -- An Ohio State University researcher has patented a dental anesthetic formula that's considerably more effective than any currently available.

The composition is a mix of a local anesthetic agent and a sugar alcohol. The alcohol opens the protective covering of sensory nerves, allowing the anesthetic agent to enter the innermost parts of the nerves it is meant to numb.

Researchers found that the new composition could completely numb the anesthetized region in about 90 percent of cases, as opposed to about 50 percent of cases using only the local anesthesia in the standard dosage.

"Using the sugar alcohol makes local anesthesia more effective," said Al Reader, inventor of the composition, a professor of dentistry and director of Ohio State's Advanced Endodontics Program.

Reader believes the principle behind his new formulation could be applied to improve anesthesia for a range of surgeries.

Reader tested different versions of his formulation - a mix of lidocaine (a local anesthetic) and mannitol (the sugar alcohol) in different proportions - on more than 200 people. The best results came from a concoction of mannitol and about 64 milligrams of lidocaine - roughly double the amount currently used by dental anesthetists. With that combination, about 90 percent of patients were able to achieve complete numbness.

Reader and his colleagues studied the efficacy of the composition on study participa
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Contact: Al Reader
Reader.2@osu.edu
614-292-3596
Ohio State University
9-Sep-2000