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Anesthesia buffering: Onpharma’s Onset

July 15, 2010 By Trish Walraven 13 Comments

After all the buzz in the past two years about a new type of carpule that also starts with an “O,” you may think you’ve seen this product before. In one sense it’s similar: it must be used in conjunction with your regular anesthetic instead of as an anesthesia alternative.  What’s more exciting is that this just may change the way we prepare syringes for every single patient from now on.

Onset™ is the name of a new buffering agent created by Onpharma™ Inc. that will be available as soon as the final FDA review is complete. If you can answer yes to these questions, read on:

  • Do you want to eliminate the sting that can be caused by the acidity of local anesthetic?


  • Would you like to be able to give an injection and go to work immediately?


  • Are you interested in a product that will help you get your patients profoundly numb, even when infection is present?


  • What about tissue necrosis? Would you like to prevent it if possible?


The idea behind the pH buffering isn’t novel, but the patented device is. Onpharma™ has created a simple system that can be used with all anesthetics and also solves the problems of shelf life and proper dosing. Product previews aren’t yet available on the internet so all images and details will be withheld here at DentalBuzz until further notice (it’s so hard to hold a secret, though!).

If your curiosity is now piqued, make sure to click over to the Onpharma™ website and sign up so that the company can let you know when you can purchase Onset™.

Just don’t expect it to be rapid.  

____________________________

8/8/10 Update: Here’s the sneak peak of the prototype; the buzz is that the dosing indicator will have further refinements before the product comes to market.

6/25/12 Update:

So not really an update, but what about an alternative? Here’s an HD video that shows how to buffer anesthetic without without the high expense of the Onpharma Onset pen:

Filed Under: Operative Dentistry, Products, Research Tagged With: Anesthesia, anesthetic buffering, dental anesthesia buffering, dental injections, dental pain management, Novalar, Onpharma, Onset, OraVerse

Comments

  1. Brian says

    July 17, 2010 at 2:19 pm

    Any idea how much this will cost?

    Reply
    • admin says

      July 23, 2010 at 10:15 pm

      Onpharma is currently estimating the cost to be 5 to 7 dollars per injection. Thanks for asking!

      Reply
  2. Donald Urquhart says

    July 28, 2010 at 5:22 pm

    So, if I’m understanding this right, basically it’s an additive to the usual anesthesia that you use to make the experience better. It reduces the acidity of the shot and helps the active ingredients take effect much quicker, am I right? It sounds wonderful if that’s what it is, though I’ve always had lidocaine rubbed on my gums first and then the injection slowly started up and I’ve never had a problem with it. Most of the time I wasn’t even aware that they had started the injection, and I’ve had to have a full root canal and four impacted wisdom teeth pulled. Still, if it helps people get the dental surgery they need, I’m all for it.

    Donald from Tooth Extraction Pain How Long

    Reply
  3. Dr. Scott Pope says

    August 19, 2010 at 11:53 am

    We have been using the Onset system by Onpharma now for about 4 weeks and I can tell you from personal experience that it is incredible. The Onset system buffers your local anesthetic, Lidocaine, raising the ph ideally to 7.5 resulting in a painless injection for the patient, eliminating the “bee sting”. It also increasing the concentration of “active” anesthetic by approximately 6000 %, resulting in instantaneous anesthesia. No waiting time. We inject, painlessly, and start in on our procedure immediately. We save on average 10-15 minutes per procedure! The patients love it and enjoy less time in the dental chair. Can’t say enough about how it is having such a positive impact on our practice.

    Reply
    • admin says

      August 20, 2010 at 7:07 pm

      Dr. Pope, you seem to know a lot about the Onset system. Thank you for the thumbs up about this product! If there is a way for other dental practices to use this in their offices prior to FDA approval as you have, I hope that you can come back here to post contact information for interested dentists.

      Reply
  4. Dr. Scott Pope says

    August 25, 2010 at 12:12 pm

    The Onset System by Onpharma already has FDA approval and has been distributed to a select few dentists to test the final product version prior to national release, possibly in September or October. You can go to http://www.onpharma.com for more information and sign up to be notified when the Onset System is available. I can tell you that it will change how you do dentistry. It has for us!

    Reply
  5. Marvin B Carnow DDS says

    September 13, 2010 at 5:12 pm

    We have been using Onset for about four weeks with excellent results. For now, the buffering agent is only to be used with lidocaine. The formula to buffer other anesthetics will be published in the near future, I understand. We get deep, quick anesthesia, with no injection sting. Have not needed topical anesthetic, as patients don’t feel the sting. I have had onset used on me with the same results.

    Reply
  6. Debbie Castagna says

    September 15, 2010 at 3:17 pm

    Great to hear this feedback. Several of my clients are using Onset with great results. As a practice management consultant, I have to say that as exciting as the science is, what is really awesome is the management potential. They are myriad benefits–because you can get to work almost immediately, it means less chair time for the patient, the potential for more patients seen in the day, increased production and real marketing potential…particularly for the early adopters. Get on board!

    Reply
  7. Sheena Singleton says

    December 23, 2010 at 8:26 pm

    So, if I’m understanding this right, basically it’s an additive to the usual anesthesia that you use to make the experience better. It reduces the acidity of the shot and helps the active ingredients take effect much quicker, am I right? It sounds wonderful if that’s what it is, though I’ve always had lidocaine rubbed on my gums first and then the injection slowly started up and I’ve never had a problem with it. Most of the time I wasn’t even aware that they had started the injection, and I’ve had to have a full root canal and four impacted wisdom teeth pulled. Still, if it helps people get the dental surgery they need, I’m all for it. Donald from Tooth Extraction Pain How Long

    Reply
  8. Anne Wilkinson says

    December 24, 2010 at 2:25 am

    Any idea how much this will cost?

    Reply
  9. Dr. Scott Pope says

    January 5, 2011 at 3:56 pm

    Onpharma is presently taking and sending out orders across the U.S. for the Onset system. You can contact them directly at http://www.onpharma.com to find out the exact costs. In our office, I think it adds up to about $5 per patient. I save at least 10-15 minutes per procedure which is a big plus for everyone. Shorter, painless appointments for the patient and the ability to see more patients in a day for me and my staff. Win/win. I am already looking back and wondering how I could have practiced for so many years without this product and the amount of time that was wasted waiting for the anesthetic to work.

    Reply
  10. L Gary Painter says

    September 30, 2015 at 1:16 pm

    Our practice has been using Onset for a couple of months now and found it to be a prime example of a product that was oversold and under produced. The product simply did not work as promised. The anesthetic wasn’t as effective and, as a result, was difficult to get patients numb. What’s more is there’s no buy back guarantee – after producing unsatisfactory results, we notified our sales rep who told us we couldn’t even get our money back. As a dentist and a business owner, I find this completely unacceptable. Having said that, I wouldn’t recommend doing future business with Onpharma.

    Reply
  11. Sharon Jimenez says

    April 17, 2017 at 11:52 pm

    Approximately how many offices use this device? Or even more specific do you know how many dentist offices in San Diego use this?

    Reply

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DentalBuzz explores rising trends in dentistry with its own slant. The speed at which new products and ideas enter the dental field can often outpace our ability to understand just exactly the direction in which we are heading. But somehow, by being a little less serious about dentistry and dental care, we might get closer to making sense of it all.

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