Sedation Options
Port Angeles, WA
Fear of a dental procedure is not a good excuse for staying away from our office, but all too often people put off their checkups because they are scared of the pain. Here at Turella Oral Surgery, we understand that sitting in a chair with your mouth open can be unnerving, even though you have received something to numb the area so that there is no pain. If the fear of a procedure is keeping you away, make an appointment. Sedation dentistry could be exactly what you are looking for.
What Is Sedation Dentistry?
Sedation dentistry is where the patient is either extremely relaxed or all the way asleep for a procedure. Either way, you will not remember what happened or feel any of it.
Sedation dentistry is great for children because dental procedures can be frightening to a child. Sedation is also the answer for many adults. It allows them to have the work that they need to be done, without having to worry about the procedure.
Types of Sedation
A good part of the time, we will use nitrous oxide for sedation. This is more commonly known as laughing gas. Unlike what you may have seen on television, nitrous oxide is not going to cause you to fall on the floor laughing. Instead, it will help you to relax. Most likely you will not fall all the way to sleep, but you will not remember what happened after the nitrous oxide wears off.
Enteral sedation, also known as oral sedation, is a pill or a liquid to drink to get you to relax and not feel anything. Sometimes we will combine it with nitrous oxide. Once again, you will not fall all the way to sleep. You will relax, and you will not remember your oral surgery.
With IV sedation, you will receive an IV, which will provide you with the sedative. This is similar to what is used for many minor medical procedures. You will be in a deeper state of relaxation than with the two previous methods, but you still may not fall asleep.
If you want to sleep through everything, or if the procedure is more complex, we might recommend general anesthesia. This will allow you to fall all the way to sleep throughout the whole surgery. The anesthesia will usually be injected into a vein.
Which type of sedation we use for you will depend on many things. One of the main considerations is what the surgery is. For more complex surgery, we will most likely recommend deeper sedation. Remember that after any oral surgery, you should have someone drive you home.
Sedation dentistry has made it so that people who have a fear of dental procedures will finally come into our office. Some types of sedation have also helped those with an extreme fear of needles. Here at Turella Oral Surgery, we want to know about your fears if you need a procedure. Call (360) 912-8244 to let us know your thoughts. We want to make a trip to our office as comfortable as possible. |
