Will It Make You Feel Relax at Dentist’s Chair

Have you always hesitated to seek dental care because of the fear of uncertainty? You are not alone. Many people refuse to seek dental treatments because of phobias, anxieties, and other unresolved problems. Thankfully, dentists can meet such needs through sedation dental protocols in dentistry, usually administered before the performance of any dental procedure.

​What Is Sedation Dentistry?

It is the use of medication to promote body and mind relaxation for patients before they undergo dental procedures. Sedation dentistry is commonly employed to treat dental anxiety, which can make patients restless on the dentist’s chair, lowering the ability of a dentist to offer effective treatment.

Sedation works by tricking your mind into feeling safe, relaxed, and comfortable. These feelings affect your body so that you no longer can respond anxiously to any dental works. Aside from that, sedation dentistry can help reduce any discomfort associated with dental procedures, particularly when used alongside local anesthesia for numbing the mouth.

​Types of Sedation Applied in Sedation Dentistry

When your dentist in San Clemente is about to begin a dental procedure, he/she can use different types of sedatives:

1. Oral sedation dentistry – involves taking a pill or tablet, usually an hour or so before any dental works begin. Oral sedation is perfect for mild and moderate sedation, allowing you to remain conscious throughout your treatment.
2. Inhaled sedation dentistry – involves inhaling laughing gas through a face mask placed over your nose and mouth. The laughing gas helps evoke feelings of pleasure and relaxation instead of tension and anxiety during your procedure. The level of sedation can be controlled to allow for mild or moderate sedation by regulating the amount of laughing gas relative to oxygen you inhale.
3. Intravenous sedation dentistry – commonly called IV sedation. It involves passing the sedative medication through the veins of your body directly to your bloodstream. It is the fastest type of sedation, proving very useful for emergency dentistry.
4. General dentistry, also known as sleep dentistry or deep sedation – casts you into a deep sleep. You cannot wake up from sleep until the effects of anesthesia wear off. Usually, medical practitioners administer a different drug into your system to overcome the sedative effects. It is not commonly used in dentistry because of the high risks involved with this type of sedation.

The type of sedative that your dentist will use for your treatment will largely be influenced by factors such as:

1. Duration of your treatment
2. Level of the urgency of your treatment
3. Nature of the procedure – level of invasiveness

​Who Can Have Sedation at Dental Clinic?

Sedation dentistry near you is not limited to only a few people. If you need to undergo any dental treatment, your dentist will point out the option of sedation dentistry. Typically, sedation in dentistry benefits:

1. Patients with dental phobias and anxiety or other mental health conditions like autism.
2. Patients who cannot sit still on the dentist’s chair – especially children.
3. Patients with serious gag reflexes make it impossible to perform dental procedures efficiently.
4. Patients set to undergo invasive dental procedures.
5. Patients who are set to undergo long and rather complex dental works.
6. Patients who require multiple dental procedures in one visit.
7. Patients with a low pain threshold.

​Can Any Dentist Perform Sedation?

Although all dentists are qualified to offer dental care, not all dental experts can conduct sedation dentistry. As much as sedation is a crucial tool in dentistry, it cannot be administered by all dentists. Sedation dentistry should only be performed by appropriately trained practitioners, licensed and certified to perform such dental tasks. At Seascape Cosmetic and Implant Dentistry – San Clemente, we ensure that all our patients are sensitized about sedation dentistry, informing them of the procedures involved and familiarizing them with our dentists qualified to administer sedation dentistry.

Is Sedation Dentistry Safe?

Before undergoing any dental work, you must be sure of your safety. When handled by trained dental practitioners, sedation dentistry is safe, even for children. The reason is that a dentist can regulate the sedation levels accordingly during the procedure. Besides, many sedation methods in dentistry are conscious sedation, which means you will remain awake and almost entirely aware of the events in your surroundings.