Double Click for Pain Relief

For people needing pain medication, there’s a needle-free device on the horizon. It’s a fancy electronic patch — and it provides full pain relief when the patient clicks a button.

The FDA is currently reviewing this new pain medication device. “This technology could eliminate the need for cumbersome pain pumps mounted on an IV pole with the accompanying tubes and wires and could provide more continuous, complete pain relief,” says Eugene R. Viscusi, MD, director of Acute Pain Management Service at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, in a news release. He presented a study of the device at the annual American Society of Anesthesiologists meeting being held in San Francisco this week. The new device, known as a patient-controlled transdermal system (PTCS), is roughly the size of a credit card but slightly thicker and is worn on the upper arm or chest. The device dispenses medication during a 10-minute time period when it is activated by the patient and shuts off automatically at 24 hours. The Study In Viscusi’s study, 235 patients got the PTCS device for pain medication after surgery. More than 60% said they were “very satisfied” with the device, with more than 80% finding it easy to use and convenient. A comparison group of 204 surgery patients got a placebo device — one that didn’t deliver pain medication. However, the “placebo” patients were given pain medication when they needed them, he says. With the device, surgery patients may recover faster because they have greater mobility, Viscusi says. “With this device, patients don’t have all the paraphernalia connecting them to technology, avoiding a real burden that inhibits movement, daily activities, and physical therapy,” he explains. How Does It Work? Although the PTCS is new, the technology of using a low-level electric current to deliver pain medication is not. According to Viscusi, iontophoretic delivery, or charged ions being delivered across the skin, has existed for years. However, the older devices were huge, he says. “This device is small and smart with a system that provides the correct amount of pain medication needed for each particular patient.” This device differs from other patches that deliver drugs, such as nicotine patches, he says. The PCTS only delivers pain medication when the patient double-clicks a button to activate the device. Otherwise, the drug stays safely inside the device and cannot penetrate the skin. Very likely, the device will also reduce drug mix-ups and other potential errors, Viscusi adds. Also, nurses will have to spend less time tending to pain medication equipment like the pain pump. (Source: American Society of Anesthesiologists annual meeting. News release, American Society of Anesthesiologists: WebMD Health News)