Sedation dentistry
The good news is that dentistry does not have to be scary or painful. Modern day dentistry employs safe and effective methods to avoid or alleviate pain and anxiety for dental treatments. Among the choices are various degrees of sedation dentistry.
The levels of pain control are determined by the appropriate type of sedation, including the following:
- Local anesthesia is generally an injection at the site where the treatment is to be performed. To minimize the possible pain of the injection, a pre-numbing agent is usually applied to numb the tissue before any injection. Modern injection devices are computer controlled to guage the tension of the tissue and slowly deliver the numbing medication to make it comfortable for the patient.
- Minimal sedation is usually based on nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, in combination with local ansesthia. There is no lingering effect of this form of sedation, so you can drive as soon as you are done with your treatment.
- Moderate sedation is a deeper level of sedation and may be administered orally or intravenously (performed by an anesthesiologist). While the patient remains awake during the treatment, there is diminished awareness and no memory of the treatment. The effect is lingering, so you will need someone to drive you home after the treatment.
- Deep sedation is only performed in a hospital setting for those who need more than the other levels of sedation menitoned. You are given a variety of drugs and gases and you are not easily awakened and may need breathing assistance.
