Sedation Dentistry at Farmington Family Dental
Hey, Dr. Perry at Farmington Family Dental. It's good to hear from you. I get a lot of questions about sedation dentistry, like sleeping when dentistry is being done. If you'd like to know more about some of the more commonly asked questions, stay tuned below. We'll help you out.
Dr. Perry, what is sedation dentistry?
Sedation dentistry is where we put you as a patient asleep to some extent. It could either be you're less anxious about it, bringing you a little bit less aware of what's going on, all the way down to being completely asleep. You're not aware of what's going on; you're out cold, and we bring you back when you're done.
Why is sedation dentistry so effective at treating anxiety about dental procedures?
Sedation dentistry is effective for treating anxiety or anxious patients because being able to stick through a dental procedure, having your mouth open, with all that water going on for two hours, and numbing, can get overwhelming. If you feel overwhelmed, you know who you are. I would say a good quarter or so of the adult population in our area is anxious to one extent or another. If you're struggling to go to the dentist, the best thing you could do is something like sedation to get everything done and then just have it maintained after that. For bigger things, it can make it a lot more comfortable or accessible for you. Please take care of your mouth. It's part of your body, and if it takes doing the sedation to do it, come on down. We'd love to help you.
What are the types of dental sedation?
What are the different types of dental sedation or sedation that we use in a dental office? The first type, and probably the most common in the dental world, is pill-based sedation. That's where we use something like halcion or diazepam. There are lots of different types. Those are in a drug class called benzodiazepines. For any nerds out there, you can look it up. That type of medication you take, and then you have the procedure done. You just take it like a pill. It's pretty straightforward. There are no needles or IVs needed. What's nice about that is it's simple. It doesn't require a lot of safety mechanisms built into it because by itself you are still awake. You're still maintaining your own airway, and things go fairly well as far as that goes. It's simple. The next type or level of depth of sedation you can go through is an IV, a moderate sedation. That's where we put an IV into your arm. In that IV, we're using a variety of medications to get you to a comfortable level. Usually, someone like this is responsive. If we were to ask you a question or poke you or nudge you and interact with you, you'd respond. But most people who are sedated like that don't remember the experience. It's not like the memory is fully engaged; it's like you're half awake. Kind of like 4:00 in the morning; you don't remember what happened at 4 in the morning. Who does? So it's a half-awake kind of experience. The next level down is a deep sedation type experience. That's where you are asleep, and we're usually maintaining your airway for you, securing it so nothing goes down your throat that shouldn't. You're just asleep for the procedure. Most of those are what's done in a dental office. The next level down from there is general anesthesia. That is where we are literally breathing for you. You're on machines. Usually, something like that is not done in a dental office setting. That is usually reserved for a hospital setting. Sometimes dentists will do that in the hospital. That is not something that I do in my office, but for people who are very anxious or medically compromised, sometimes that's the route to go.
What can I expect during oral sedation?
What could you expect if we did an oral sedation like the pill I just talked about? Pretty simple. Usually, we give you a pill for the night before. You can take that. It helps with a lot of anxiety. If you've got the anxiety, it helps you sleep better because when you sleep well at night, things go much better. Think back to the time when you had a 2-year-old. You know what I mean? If not, that joke probably fell flat, but it's okay. Usually, about 15 or 30 minutes before your appointment, we'll have you arrive at the office all set and ready to go, and then you'll take your first dose before the appointment. We don't do multiple doses. It's just that one dose, and then you have your procedure done. It usually takes about 15 to 20 minutes for that to kick in. As it's kicking in and you're starting to feel it, that's when we get you numb and start with our procedure. We wait and make sure you're comfortable before we begin. Most of the time, that oral sedation, if you're just nervous like a regular or typical nervous, will take care of it.
Is sedation dentistry painless?
Is sedation dentistry painless? I'd like to argue that all dentistry should be painless, but it's not always painless. Sedation dentistry can be much more comfortable for the type of person who's just anxious about going to see the dentist. It helps tremendously to have that done. Now, I don't think there's any dentistry that can be totally pain-free. You might feel the anesthetic as it's going in. You can feel various things, but I find that a problem. In most cases, it's possible to do the dentistry from start to finish without you feeling anything more than the anesthetic going in. Nothing else should be felt. That's how we do it here, sedation or not. Sedation can help a lot when someone's anxious because that anxiety really ramps up those nerves. It can make you feel more, objectively speaking. It's nice to have; it can be a lot closer to pain-free than what most people experience in the dental office when they're nervous.
What are the possible side effects of sedation dentistry?
What are the side effects of sedation dentistry? The side effects really depend on what level of sedation you've been under. The pill type that we use has a half-life of an hour and a half. That means it stays in your system for about four hours or so, maybe six; something like that is fairly typical. That means it's worn off by the end of the day for most people. You will need a driver to and from your appointment. With any type of sedation we do, I recommend that so you're not feeling groggy behind the wheel. That's probably the biggest side effect: just being a little bit sedated, tired, or exhausted after the procedure. Aside from that, it's pretty straightforward. The recovery is straightforward, and you get up and walk yourself out. Not a lot to write home about on that.
How can I request sedation during my next dental procedure?
You can request sedation at your next procedure just by talking to your dentist. If that's something you want to discuss, come on in. Let me talk to you about it. Let's see if you are a good fit medically, so you're healthy enough to have it done, and then we can proceed.
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