Introduction
There are many people in the world who are scared or afraid from going to dentist for regular checkup. This is because they may have experience a bad and painful experience in the past there by creating negative impact on the mind of the people. However nowadays a recent technology has come up which is also called as sedation dentistry. Some people have dentist phobia because of the needles and drilling done by them inside the teeth. If a person avoids the dental problems for long duration of time, then it can result in causing serious problems. The new technology known as sedation dentistry is gaining popularity because of it is a painless procedure.
What is sedation dentistry?
The term sedation dentistry aims at giving oral sedatives to the client thereby making them relaxed and calm. This drug aims at suppressing the pain and puts the central nervous system into relaxing and sleep mode. There are different types of sedation ranging from minimum sedative to deep sedative. These oral sedatives are given to the client depending upon the time they take for procedure. This sedative puts a patient into unconscious state and makes him feel relaxed. This technology helps a person in experiencing anxiety free treatment thereby making an enjoyable experience for him and also eliminates the phobia and fear from his mind.
Sedation methods
This treatment is done by using oral sedatives which is given to a patient before half an hour of the procedure. Oral sedatives such as ativan, valium and xanax are given to a patient. Intravenous sedation is also another type of sedation method and is not a pain killer; hence it is necessary to administer local anesthesia. Intravenous method is used by experts since there are some risks associated with it. Patient can be made relaxed and calm by giving them nitrous oxide sedation which can be used in combination along with local anesthesia. A patient can be put to deep sleep state by giving them general anesthesia.
Advantages and benefits of sedation dentistry
Good dental care is made possible with the help of sedation dentistry. The procedure that takes number of sittings can be done only in one sitting and the patient feels that the treatment is over within few minutes. This procedure is very comfortable because it is quick and painless. Complicated treatment like root canals and simple fillings can be done within no time and also makes it a painless experience for a patient.
How safe is sedation dentistry?
Since patient is put into deep sleep, a dentist can perform procedures such as installing dental crowns or implants smoothly. This technology has no side effects but can cause drug interaction with other medications. For this reason, it is necessary that you inform dentist about the medicines that you are taking. Make sure that you do not consume alcohol before and after the treatment as it may cause side effects with the oral sedatives. Before undergoing this technology, it is necessary that you consult your doctor.
About the Author:
Dr. Rodney Holcombe is the author of this article on Sedation dentistry.
Find more information about Sleep dentistry here.