Multiply repeatable and adjustable on-demand phototriggered local anesthesia.
A phototriggerable system whereby patients could repeatedly and non-invasively control the timing and dosage of local anesthesia according to their needs would be beneficial for perioperative pain and perhaps obviate the need for oral narcotics. However, clinical application of phototriggerable systems have been limited by concerns over phototoxicity of lasers and limited tissue penetration of light. To address these limitations, we increased the devices' effective sensitivity to light by co-delivering a second compound, dexmedetomidine, that potentiates the effect of delivered local anesthetics. The concurrent release of dexmedetomidine enhanced the efficacy of released local anesthetics, greatly increasing the number of triggerable nerve blocks (up to nine triggerable events upon a single injection) and reducing the irradiance needed to induce nerve block by 94%. The intensity and duration of on-demand analgesia could be adjusted by varying the intensity and duration of irradiance, which could not only be delivered by lasers, but also by light-emitting diodes, which are less expensive, safer, and more portable.
Laboratory for Biomaterials and Drug Delivery, Department of Anesthesiology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
Alina Y
AY
Rwei
Laboratory for Biomaterials and Drug Delivery, Department of Anesthesiology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Changyou
C
Zhan
Laboratory for Biomaterials and Drug Delivery, Department of Anesthesiology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Bruce
B
Wang
Laboratory for Biomaterials and Drug Delivery, Department of Anesthesiology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA. Electronic address: daniel.kohane@childrens.harvard.edu.
Daniel S
DS
Kohane
D000772:Anesthesia, Local / Q000379:methods*; D000818:Animals; D002460:Cell Line; D002470:Cell Survival; D020927:Dexmedetomidine / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D006801:Humans; D008081:Liposomes; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D009407:Nerve Block; D009942:Organometallic Compounds / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010165:Palladium; D055668:Photochemical Processes; D017319:Photosensitizing Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
C000625323:1,4,8,11,15,18,22,25-octabutoxyphthalocyaninato-palladium(II); D008081:Liposomes; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D017319:Photosensitizing Agents; D010165:Palladium; D020927:Dexmedetomidine
Liposome; Near-infrared; Photosensitizer; Tetrodotoxin