sedation dentistry
Many people experience dental anxiety before and during dental procedures. It’s okay to feel nervous or even fearful when anticipating an appointment. We understand that our patients aren’t all the same. We have many methods available to provide you with a relaxed, comfortable dental experience.
The most common forms of sedation used in dentistry are inhaled, oral, and intravenous sedation. While sedation dentistry makes the procedure more tolerable for you, it is important to understand that they are not painkillers, and you will still require the use of dental anesthetic.
Laughing Gas
Laughing gas, an inhaled sedative, brings one of the safest and easiest sedation techniques to nearly any procedure. Patients from young to old may benefit by simply breathing in and out.
Laughing gas, or nitrous oxide, is an excellent way to combat anxiety for most dental procedures. The mildest form of sedation that we use, nitrous oxide is inhaled through a small mask that rests over your nose. Nitrous oxide gas is odorless and is used in combination with pure oxygen to induce a feeling of relaxation and well-being during treatment. We can easily customize the level of sedation for each patient, which takes effect within minutes.
Being a mild sedative, you won’t experience any short-term memory loss as you might with other forms of sedation. At the end of treatment, the sedative effect caused by the laughing gas dissipates almost immediately when the mask is removed, and you will be able to return home with zero lasting effects. You don’t even need an escort to or from your appointment if you are using only nitrous oxide for sedation.
Watch this video on dental anxiety.
