Open wide—here comes the dentist with a syringe in hand to give you a bit of local anesthetic. For some people, just talking about makes them queasy, let alone actually having it done. But Saniswiss wants to make it a little easier with the Saniject. 

JEROME WEILL: What makes the pain is really the pressure.

Jérôme Weill is Saniswiss’ CEO. He says pain doesn’t come from the actual insertion of the needle, but rather when the anesthetic is pushed into the gums.

JEROME WEILL: This device because it is made of plastic and the patent is based on the physics of plastics is that it bends like a spring, so that offers the benefit for the user that you don’t have to really check how hard is the tissue. Just press and the device will do that automatically.

The red and white disposable syringe, which cost less than five francs, is held like pen. And instead of being pushed from the top, it has a lever on the side that is clicked with a finger.

JEROME WEILL: One click equals one dose of anesthetic. One of the benefits of the device is that by giving little amounts of anesthesia, which is better absorbed by the tissue, the patients maybe an hour or a half-an-hour he no longer feels the anesthetics. 

The parts are made of recycled plastic and Saniswiss has sold more than a million of them so far, including in the developing world. It comes in a small plastic case with four parts, which seems pretty simple.

DAVID WEILL: Making things simple is one of the most difficult things in the world.

That’s’ David Weill, Jérôme’s cousin, he is the lead designer on the Saniject. It took three years to get the product where it is now.

DAVID WEILL: And truly what is today our strengths is to have done things very simple and this is the base of this device and this is why we came today in this niche of dental but now in other niche because we could do something simple that was not existing.

The company’s not just interested in dentistry. Next on the list is the syringe’s use in cosmetic procedures like botox.

Some dentists in Switzerland are still experimenting with the new needles. They haven’t caught on here yet, says Weill. But he’ll keep trying to get those in the dentistry world on board with the idea that administering pain medication doesn’t have to be painful.

Alex Helmick, World Radio Switzerland.