What Are the Types of Dental Sedation?

Although Apollo Dental does not offer sedation options as part of your dental care with us, sedation is a popular resource in the dental industry that we believe our patients should know more about.

Many individuals are afraid of visiting a dentist and cannot bear the thought of having to go through a dental operation. Luckily, many dentists use painkillers and anesthetics to make this procedure painless.

Unfortunately, making this procedure painless is not enough for some patients. For this reason, most dentists prefer using sedation. Sedation dentistry is a common dental procedure in which your dentist gives you a sedative to reduce your awareness of the procedure. As a result, your level of anxiety will reduce, and you will remain comfortable throughout the whole procedure.

This article highlights the three common types of dental sedation.

Laughing Gas 

Laughing gas, also known as Nitrous Oxide, is the commonly used dental sedation method for people with mild anxiety.

During this procedure, your dentist will put a small inhaler mask over your nose and allow you to breathe in the gas. As soon as you inhale the gas, you will feel the effects quickly. Your dentist will keep regulating the amount of sedation accordingly throughout the procedure. When the procedure is over, your dentist will give you oxygen to flush the gas from your system.

The sedation effects of laughing gas are mild. This gas allows you to remain awake during the procedure. In addition, since this sedative is a gas, its effects will wear off quickly. Therefore, your dentist can allow you to drive yourself home once the procedure is done.

Oral Sedation

Oral sedation is a type of sedation administered orally, usually in pill form. The main aim of this type of sedation is to keep you conscious and relaxed throughout the whole procedure so you can cooperate with your dentist if need be. For instance, your dentist may ask you to tilt your head to access your tooth easily. However, you may feel drowsy and fall asleep depending on the dosage administered.

Before you take the oral sedation pill, your dentist will discuss the type of medication that works for you while considering your dental treatment schedule, the length of the treatment procedure, and your medical history. Oral sedative effects may take up to a day to wear off. Therefore, you may need someone to drive you home after the procedure.

Intravenous (IV) Sedation

IV sedation involves injecting a sedative directly into your bloodstream through an IV line. Since the sedative is administered directly into your blood, it will take effect immediately. After some seconds, you will feel completely relaxed. You may also fall into a deep sleep, but you will be conscious. However, you may not remember any details of the procedure afterward.

There are two types of IV dental sedation:

• Twilight IV sedation. This type of dental sedation is quite similar to oral sedation, only this method involves injecting the sedative into your bloodstream. This method is suitable for long dental procedures since your dentist can regulate the dosage during the procedure.
• General anesthesia. This type of sedation is useful when a patient requires major oral surgery. When your dentist administers this type of sedative, you will become completely unconscious until your anesthesiologist awakens you.

When you’re under IV sedation, your dentist may hook you to a machine to monitor your blood pressure and your heart and breathing rate, depending on your health condition.

Visiting your dentist should be a relishing experience. However, you may feel anxious considering the pain associated with dental procedures. To conquer this fear, book an appointment with one of the friendly dentists from Apollo Dental or call us for more information about dental sedation. We look forward to taking care of all of your dental health needs.