While refusing to vaccinate is one way people show their political leanings, but for one group of folks, the reason is just good old fashioned trypanophobia. That’s the scientific term for fear of needles. And that’s a shame because vaccines protect us against a number of deadly diseases such as chicken pox, measles, tetanus, pneumonia, flu and COVID. Luckily, there are alternatives to needle sticks.  Some can be delivered nasally or into the muscle with compressed air. One being developed uses a Velcro-like patch to deliver vaccines.   

Among the newest methods is using ultrasound. The use of sound waves, it’s able to breach our skin sufficently to deliver the vaccine and trigger an immune response. When ultrasound travels through a liquid, tiny bubbles are formed.  The bubbles then implode in a process called cavitation that creates enough energy to drive molecules through the skin.   Cavitation “clears” a route through the layer of dead skin cells on the skin surface…  then the high energy sound waves momentarily open the cells' membranes so the vaccine molecules can pass directly into the skin cells.   

This will provide the antigens that trigger an immune response, and the protecting antibodies are made. There are concerns that too much cavitation could damage cells so the ultrasound would need to be precise. It’s another way that people who fear needles can get immunized and get the protection they deserve. 

We are Drs. David Niesel and Norbert Herzog, at UTMB and Quinnipiac University, where biomedical discoveries shape the future of medicine.   For much more and our disclaimer go to medicaldiscoverynews.com or subscribe to our podcast. Sign up for expanded print episodes at www.illuminascicom.com or our podcasts at:  Medical Discovery News (buzzsprout.com)