HEALTH
Dental Sedation 101: How Does It Work? Why Do You Need One?
Visiting a dentist can be scary and may lead to fear and anxiety. You may have heard stories from your friends saying dental procedures are painful, or you have had negative experiences with your previous dentist. Also, some dental treatments may scare you away, and you’d prefer struggling with a toothache to visiting a dentist.
Thankfully, efficient and painless dentistry is now available through sedation. Dental sedation, also known as sedation dentistry or sleep dentistry, is the use of medicines and relaxation procedures to help patients feel calm and comfortable during dental treatments.
If you’re about to undergo dental sedation, knowing how they work and why you need them is vital when preparing for sedation services. This lets you know what will work best for you and helps you mentally prepare for your procedure. Fortunately, this article discusses how sedation works and some of the reasons why you might need one. Read on.
How Does Dental Sedation Work?
Dental sedation is primarily administered in three ways. The type of sedation you go through will depend on various factors, including your anxiety level, health history, and personal preferences. The three types of sedation include:
- Oral Sedation
This is the most common type of sedation dentistry that doesn’t require injections. Your dentist will prescribe a pill approximately an hour before your appointment. These drugs work by minimizing the activity in the section of the brain in charge of fear and anxiety. When your time for treatment reaches, you’ll be fully relaxed and ready for the procedure.
- Intravenous (IV) Sedation
In this method, your dentist will insert a fine needle into a vein in the back of your hand or arm. They then connect the needle to an intravenous tube that administers sedatives instantly into your bloodstream. With this option, you may have minimal insight into your surroundings and minimal memory of the technique. Thus, IV Sedation is ideal for people with severe dental phobia.
During your treatment, your dentist will always check your blood pressure, oxygen levels, heart rate, and pulse rate to ensure you don’t have any adverse reactions to the sedative. In case of anything, they may adjust your dosage or use reversal drugs.
- Nitrous Oxide Sedation
This type of sedation is a mixture of oxygen and nitrous oxide. This sedation, also known as ‘laughing gas,’ will be administered by your dentist using a mask. The gas you inhale enables you to create euphoric feelings in the process. Additionally, it relieves anxiety and pain, allowing you to relax and stay comfortable during the dental treatment procedure.
Why Do You Need Dental Sedation?
Dental sedation can be administered in three ways. The type of sedation you go through will depend on various factors, including your anxiety level, health history, and personal preferences. The three types of sedation include:
- To Relieve Anxiety
One of the most significant reasons you need dental sedation is to relieve anxiety. Being nervous can make you avoid or delay going to the dentist until you experience severe pain and discomfort, which can lead to complex methods to repair and restore your teeth. With dental sedation, you overcome your fears and anxieties and obtain the necessary attention to solve your dental issues.
- To Reduce Pain
Most people don’t want to visit dental clinics because they don’t want to feel pain during dental procedures. Dentists are well-versed in various types of sedation and will help you to remain cozy and relaxed throughout your treatment. They’ll tailor the procedure and administer sedatives to address your requirements and ensure you don’t feel pain.
- To Lower Gag Reflex
A gag reflex is an automatic throat closing when you try swallowing an awful object. The primary goal of the gag reflex is to contract the throat to hinder you from choking. This is good because it prevents any item from going down your throat during dentistry.
During a dental procedure, however, the gag reflex can be an obstacle. Your dentist may sometimes want to go deep inside your oral cavity, but the gag reflex may hinder that. Dental sedation paralyzes this effect, allowing dentists to go as deep as they want without any hindrance and making the process faster.
- To Trigger Anterograde Amnesia
The phobia you may be having can be due to former unpleasant dental experiences that increase with each visit. This is especially true if you feel any discomfort.
Anterograde amnesia is a condition that lowers your ability to remember and keep new information. Dental sedation triggers this condition, preventing your brain from establishing new memories during the dental procedure. When your brain doesn’t remember what happened during treatment, it won’t make you panic, reducing the fear you may have on subsequent visits.
- To Streamline Dental Procedures
Dental treatments like root canals and fillings can be painful without sedatives and anesthetics. As a patient, you may squirm in the chair when your dentist is working on your teeth, interfering with the process. Thankfully, with dental sedation, you remain calm as you won’t feel any pain and won’t interfere with the method. As a result, your dentist can work faster and more effectively without fearing how you’ll react.
Conclusion
Dental issues are common but treatable when you seek medications early. However, most people postpone or delay appointments due to anxiety and fear of the procedures.
Fortunately, sedation dentistry alleviates your worries, anxiety, and pain. It also enables you to remain calm and comfortable during your treatment. With this, you have no reason to live with a decaying tooth or receding gums, but you can go for painless treatments and restore your smile.
Kenneth is a proud native of sydney, born and raised there. However, he pursued his education abroad and studied in Australia. Kenneth has worked as a journalist for almost a decade, making valuable contributions to prominent publications such as Yahoo News and The Verge. Currently, he serves as a journalist for The Hear Up, where he focuses on covering climate and science news. You can reach Kenneth at [email protected].
