Children and trypanophobes, rejoice! There is something other than Star Wars VIII to be excited about in 2017–vaccine patches are on their way. The Georgia Institute of Technology and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have been working together to create a new vaccine delivery system that will make everyone sigh with relief. In two years, clinical trials will begin a new measles vaccine that is needle-free, painless, and most importantly, cheap.
Vaccines are critical to maintaining the overall health of humanity. Our immune system has an excellent memory, and vaccines work by giving your white blood cells antigens, short for “antibody generator“, of various diseases without you ever actually being infected by that disease. Your white blood cells use those antigens to create special proteins called antibodies that specifically recognize that antigen. The antibodies will remain in your bloodstream for several months to several years, and in some cases, like chickenpox antibodies, they may stay around for your entire life. If you are ever infected with the same virus or bacteria again, your antibodies will find them and immediately target and kill them without you ever feeling sick at all.
Still, vaccines are stressful! They are traditionally delivered by hypodermic needles which are painful; they are so painful that about 10% of the world’s population has developed a serious fear of needles known as trypanophobia. But the only way to ensure that all of the vaccine is delivered adequately without the body shutting it out is to literally stab it into place. Ouch!
Image Source: Flutter-design
The proposed patch contains 100 microneedles that are only half of a millimeter tall and made of sugar, polymer, and the vaccine material. The microneedles penetrate the skin and dissolve; releasing the vaccine into the bloodstream. The process is literally painless and is done within 10 minutes.
The best part about this patch is that it will be cheap! The patches do not need to be refrigerated and do not require multiple components or special disposal methods. Administering injections requires training in order for it to be carried out safely and effectively, but these patches don’t. These are all factors that may very well be the answer to getting everyone in the world vaccinated, no matter how remote a population may be.
The CDC says that almost 400 children die of measles every day. Hopefully those days are numbered, because the future of health is here, and it’s painless.
Feature Image Source: Sanofi Pasteur
