Children with cystic fibrosis benefit from drug-free pain relief pilot thanks to Northampton family

Thanks to Samuel Austin for his donation

Children with cystic fibrosis in Northampton are set to benefit from a new form of drug-free pain relief thanks to donation from a patient.

A donation from Samuel Austin and his family kindly funded the cost of a new form of pain relief device called Buzzy.

Buzzy is a child-friendly device in the shape of a bee which uses a natural form of pain relief. Through the use of intense vibration, Buzzy confuses the communications between the body’s nerves and the brain.

The vibrating bee draws the brain’s attention away from the injection area and is said to reduce or eliminate the sharp pain associated with an injection. Patients with cystic fibrosis will be used to receiving injections in the arm, hand or chest. All of these areas can be treated with the buzzy to relieve pain. The device also has attachable wings that can be frozen; this can reduce pain in the affected area further through numbing by ice.

Cystic fibrosis specialist nurse Anita Betts said: “Before the introduction of Buzzy, we had access to numbing creams, but not everyone can use these due to allergies. Patients who receive IV antibiotics will have had gas and air or cold spray to relieve the pain, but this can also be uncomfortable.

“We are looking forward to piloting Buzzy; if it works, it will have great benefits for our younger patients”.