Understating Anesthesia and Sedation at the Dentist

Several medications are available to help create more relaxed, comfortable dental visits. Some drugs control pain, some help you relax, and others put you into a deep sleep-like state during dental treatment. We would be happy to discuss with you a number of factors when deciding which drugs to use for your treatment. The type of procedure, your overall health, history of allergies and your anxiety level are considered when determining which approach is best for your particular case.

Types of Anesthesia and Sedation

Local anesthesia is a type of medication used to prevent pain in a specific area of your mouth during treatment by blocking the nerves that sense or transmit pain, which numbs mouth tissues. We will apply a topical anesthetic to numb an area before injecting a local anesthetic. Injectable anesthetics may be used in such procedures as filling cavities, preparing teeth for crowns, extractions or treating gum disease.

Depending on the procedure, you may need a pain reliever after treatment. Non-narcotic pain relievers are the most commonly used drugs for relief of toothache or pain following dental treatment. They include acetaminophen and non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen and aspirin

For those patients that are extremely nervous or fearful of dental visits we may suggest a sedative for dental appointments. Sedatives can be administered before or during dental procedures. Sedation may involve using Nitrous Oxide (Laughing Gas) which is a gas that is inhaled through a mask causing you to have an overall feeling of relaxation. For more complex treatments or patients with profound fear and anxiety we may suggest a deeper sedative called Oral Conscious Sedation. This involves inserting an IV into the patients arm through which medications are dispensed. This is a much deeper type of sedation and is a wonderful alternative for those patients whose fear makes it impossible to move forward with dental treatment.

Dentists treat millions of patients, including managing their pain and anxiety, safely every year. The ADA urges you to take an active role in your oral health care. This means understanding the risks and benefits involved in dental treatment and also or the risk of not following up with routine care. Working together, we can work together to choose the appropriate steps to make your dental visit as safe and comfortable as possible, and to help you keep a healthy smile.