Marathon Pharma, Medline Team Up to Distribute Needleless Anesthetic Device

Marathon Pharmaceuticals has partnered with Medline Industries to market and distribute Zingo, a needle-free, powder intradermal injection system. The device delivers a topical local anesthetic in just one to three minutes, according to Marathon.

The collaboration combines Marathon's drug development and manufacturing expertise with Medline's strengths as a global distributor of medical supplies and clinical solutions.

The easy-to-use device delivers a 0.5mg dose of powdered lidocaine into the skin, through a needleless, helium-powered delivery system. Zingo is sterile, designed for a single use and does not need to be refrigerated, the Northbrook, Ill., firm said.

The device is already used at several major children’s hospitals and helps ease patient discomfort related to venipuncture and IV cannulation in children, said William Zempsky, head of the pain and palliative care at Connecticut Children's Medical Center.

Zingo is indicated for children ages three to 18. It is contraindicated in patients with a history of sensitivity to local anesthetics of the amide type. — Kellen Owings