Different Types of Sedation Dentistry and Which One Best Suits Your Needs

If you are anxious about dental procedures, sedation dentistry helps keep you comfortable. In addition, sedation dentistry benefits patients with dental phobia and expecting lengthy dental procedures. The different sedation dentistry options include nitrous oxide, oral conscious Sedation, and intravenous Sedation. Sedation dentistry requires a trained professional with certification to administer it to patients.

What Exactly Is Sedation Dentistry?

Sedation dentistry ensures you remain calm, relaxed and at ease during dental treatments. The sedation level is moderate, leaving you technically awake for your safety and cooperation but entirely relaxed. Occasionally it is called conscious Sedation because it creates short-term forgetfulness to make you insensitive to pain without losing consciousness.

Who Benefits from Sedation Dentistry?

People of all ages benefit from sedation dentistry, including children. Dentists usually suggest this option for patients with dental anxiety, fear of visiting dentists, oversensitive gag reflex, fear of needles, excessive teeth sensitivity, claustrophobia feelings in the dentist’s chair, insensitivity to local anesthesia challenges controlling movements, and special needs, including physical, behavioral, and cognitive.

Different Types of Sedation Dentistry

Sedation dentistry levels vary according to your unique requirements. The dentist near you considers factors such as your dental anxiety levels, the duration of your procedure and personal preferences. Typical forms of sedation dentistry include nitrous oxide, oral conscious Sedation, and intravenous Sedation.

• Nitrous Oxide: alternatively called laughing gas, nitrous oxide is commonly offered to adults and children with dental anxiety. You can inhale nitrous oxide through a mask feeling the effects within three to five minutes. The dentist nearby controls the sedation level and adjusts it throughout the procedure. After completing your treatment, you receive oxygen to flush the nitrous oxide out of your body. As nitrous oxide dissipates quickly, you can drive yourself after your dental procedure.
• Oral Conscious Sedation: the dentist nearby prescribes sedatives like tranquilizers, antianxiety medications, or antidepressants in pill form to have an hour before your appointment. If your child needs dental treatments, sedation dentistry in Yuba City will recommend liquid sedation for children.
• Oral conscious addition makes patients groggy, causing them to fall asleep. However, it leaves them capable of communicating with the dentist if required and awakened with a gentle nudge. However, as oral conscious Sedation temporarily affects memory and motor skills, patients will need a friend or family member accompanying them for transportation back home after their procedure.
• Intravenous Sedation: the most profound form of conscious Sedation is IV Sedation. The dentist provides sedative drugs directly into your bloodstream through your veins. They also monitor your heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygen levels and can adjust the dosage as required. Patients receiving IV Sedation generally fall asleep with no memory of their treatment when waking up. IV sedation is best for patients with severe dental anxiety needing lengthy dental procedures.

Will a Dentist Put Me to Sleep If I Ask?

Dentists consider putting children and adults to sleep if they have special needs or severe dental anxiety. They use general anesthesia in a hospital or ambulatory surgery center in such cases. General anesthesia renders you unconscious during your treatment. However, your dentist must have advanced specialized training to administer general anesthesia. Therefore in most cases, general anesthesia is administered by an anesthesiologist.

What Happens When Undergoing Procedures under Sedation Dentistry?

If your child receives intensive dental treatments like root canals or wisdom tooth extraction, the sedation dentist near you will prescribe sedatives an hour before their appointment. They will receive local anesthesia in the mouth to numb the teeth and gums but will not feel the sensation of the injection because they are entirely relaxed and comfortable from the sedatives.

How Many Hours Should I Sleep before Tooth Extraction?

When receiving treatment under sedation, dentistry sleeping before procedures like tooth removal is not necessary. As long as you take the sedatives as prescribed by the dentist, you can rest assured you will arrive at the dental practice completely relaxed and won’t realize when the dentist injected local anesthesia in your mouth or extracted the problematic tooth. You think the dentist completed your tooth extraction procedure within minutes when you spend over 45 minutes in the dentist’s chair.

Sedation dentistry is excellent for easing anxiety and dental phobia by helping you remain calm and relaxed during dental treatments. You also benefit from your appointments with the dentist because they can work faster when you are sedated. It is an excellent option for patients who avoid dental visits because of dental anxiety to compromise their oral health and smile until they need intensive treatments for the well-being of their dental phobia.

Feather River Kids Dentistry of Yuba City suggests sedation dentistry for children and adolescents with dental anxiety and special needs. If your kid needs dental treatments but is anxious about dental visits, kindly discuss sedation options with this practice to ensure your child receives the required treatments.