Rather than using traditional shots and needles, your dentist can use a wand, a pen-like handheld device, to quickly numb your tooth. The pen is attached to a small computer with a cartridge of anesthetic on top. When it's time for your dentist to numb the area, they'll use a foot pedal to turn the machine on while holding the pen on your tooth.
Unlike shots or needles, a dental wand has pressure feedback which will slow down when it meets resistance, alerting the dentist to change the wand's position - a common cause of dental pain during injections is a dentist pushing down too hard while administering local anesthetic with a traditional needle.