A Shot of Peppers May Halt Dental Pain

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Drooling after dental work may become a thing of the past, according to Harvard researchers who have developed a shot from chili peppers that appears to stop pain without numbness.

A combination of capsaicin, the natural compound that makes chili peppers hot, and a derivative of the local anesthetic lidocaine blocked pain-sensing nerve cells without interfering with any other sensations or movement, a study in rats found.

The experimental approach could replace local anesthetics used to suppress the pangs of childbirth, stop toothaches during root canals or relieve chronic soreness or itch, researchers said. It may even reduce the need for knock-out general anesthesia in surgery, they said.

"This discovery may change surgery in another new direction, improving its safety and effectiveness," said Clifford Woolf, professor of anesthesia research at Harvard Medical School and senior author of the study. "The earliest use, it's likely to replace current local anesthetics."

Rats injected with the chili-drug compound couldn't feel pain in their paws but continued to move normally and react to touch, according to the study, published in the journal Nature and performed by scientists at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

When used in surgery and obstetrics, the drug potentially would avoid the dangerous drop in blood pressure caused by a standard epidural, a method of anesthesia given to women during childbirth. It also may reduce the need for constant monitoring and help get patients home more quickly, Woolf said.