The administration of medication to relieve anxiety and relax patients during a dental appointment is known as dental sedation. It can significantly improve the dental experience for patients with mild nerves, severe anxiety, or special needs. Read on in this blog from Dental Studio 920 to learn more about sedation.
Sedation induces patients into a relaxed state. Where before, patients were anxious, stressed, apprehensive, or feeling negative emotions, after sedation, they feel calm or even euphoric. Since we offer many different sedatives, patients have many different options at their fingertips during treatment.
Sedation suppresses the sensation of pain as well as sensitive gag reflexes. It can also reduce restlessness in children and promote cooperation. Patients who struggle to open their mouths wide for long periods may struggle during certain procedures like restorative work on the rear molars. By administering sedation, this patient will feel much more comfortable and not struggle to keep their mouth open.
There are four different types of sedation – laughing gas, oral conscious sedation, IV sedation, and general anesthesia. Laughing gas is the mildest sedative a patient can get, which is what makes it the sedative of choice for young children.
This sedative has a quick onset, is inhaled through the nose through a gas mask, and is not as intense as other sedatives. Once we remove the gas mask, the sedative wears off almost immediately so patients can return to their normal activities without experiencing lingering side effects.
Oral conscious sedation comes in the form of anxiety medication that is taken an hour before your appointment. This is a deeper form of conscious sedation, but you need to arrange for someone to give you rides to and from your appointment.
IV sedation is an even deeper sedative administered directly to a patient’s veins. This results in immediate sedation at adjustable concentrations. Patients can either be deeply relaxed and awake or can receive higher concentrations to sleep during their appointment.
Finally, there’s general anesthesia which can only be administered in a hospital setting. This places patients in a state of unconsciousness, so they are completely unaware of what is going on during their appointment. Patients will wake up with no recollection of what has happened, and it will feel like no time has passed.
Sedation is very safe when administered by a certified trained professional like a Green Bay dentist. However, patients always incur some level of risk when taking medication. You can feel assured that we will carefully review your medical history to ensure that the sedative is appropriate for you beforehand, and we will monitor your vitals the entire time during your appointment.
Laughing gas is a good option for patients who want to minimize any potential risks during sedation. The more intense the sedative, the higher the risk of complications. However, this is very rare, and we have the tools and technology to monitor you to make sure everything is going according to plan and can respond to any unexpected changes in vitals.
You can choose to be conscious or unconscious, to have your sedative administered through the nose, an IV, or a pill. Sedatives also range in intensity from mild to deep.
In addition to promoting relaxation and relieving anxiety, sedation makes patients more comfortable during invasive treatments. You don’t have to suffer from anxiety during your next dental appointment. Contact us at Dental Studio 920 today to schedule a consultation with Dr. Sam Schmidt.