TRYPANOPHOBIA — or needle phobia — is one of the most common fears both in Australia and right around the world.

In fact, according to the ABC, it’s one of the top 10 most common fears held by Aussies, and it is believed to affect between 3 and 10 per cent of the population, according to Australian doctor, speaker and author Dr Cris Beer.

Not only does a fear of needles cause significant distress to sufferers, it can also prevent them from getting important vaccinations or treatment for existing medical conditions.

But if the thought of your annual flu shot fills you with dread, take heart — because it turns out there’s a stack of companies developing jab-free alternatives right now.

A number of hi-tech new devices are in the pipeline, which means that in the near future, the gut-wrenching injection could die out.

Here’s just some of the groundbreaking technology in the works.

•POP A PILL

Rani Therapeutics’ slogan is “no more painful injections” — and they’re well on their way to fulfilling their promise with the Rani Pill.

The Silicon Valley start-up is developing a “robotic” pill which is swallowed by the patient just like an ordinary tablet.

However, the capsule is actually a smart device which transports the drug past the stomach acid to the small intestine, where it breaks down and releases a very small inflatable object which then injects a fine needle into the intestinal wall to administer the dose.

The intestinal wall doesn’t feel pain, which means the vaccination is delivered without stress or discomfort, and what is left of the device is naturally flushed out of the body in time.

CEO Mir Imran told USA Today the pill would soon undergo clinical trials, which means the technology won’t be available to patients for several years.

“There are hundreds of millions of people worldwide with chronic conditions that have to take these drugs that slow the progression of their diseases,” he told the publication.

“With pills, compliance is in the 75 to 80 per cent range — much higher than with injections. “That translates into a dramatic slowdown of chronic diseases.”

•JET INJECTION

Portal Instruments, a company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the US, is also developing needle-free technology.

Its PRIME device works by shooting the liquid medication straight through a patient’s skin extremely fast, and while it sounds daunting, it is apparently almost completely without pain.

It is being tested in clinical trials now and the company has paired up with Japanese pharmaceutical company Takeda to bring the groundbreaking device to the market.

“Syringes are probably the oldest medical device in need of an upgrade,” Portal CEO Patrick Anquetil told USA Today.

“It’s more than just needle phobia. Needle anxiety is very real and much more common. And on top of that, needle fatigue is a problem for patients who take drugs for chronic conditions like multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis.

“They need the drugs. But they get to where they just can’t do it anymore.”

•DIABETES PATCH

A company called Zenomics is also working on a special patch for people with diabetes, which delivers insulin through the skin without pain via microneedles.

The patch can also monitor a patient’s glucose levels and automatically administer insulin when needed, although the device has not yet begun clinical trials.

•TAKE A PUFF

In another win for diabetes sufferers, MannKind Corp has also developed the Afrezza inhaler which delivers insulin through the lungs and then into the bloodstream, with zero needles required.

The good news is it’s already available to the public in the US at least, and sales are growing steadily.

•MOSQUITO BITE

A group of researchers from Kansai University in Osaka, Japan have developed a virtually pain-free injection in the form of a hypodermic needle modelled on a mosquito’s proboscis.

The tiny needle is just 1mm long with a diameter of 0.1mm, and comes with jagged edges which, surprisingly, actually make the injection far less painful than traditional jabs.