Your dental team understands that many patients are hesitant about dental visits due to anxiety or fears. Different levels of anesthesia and sedation allow your dentist to treat you in a manner that you find comfortable. Your dentist will assess your treatment options and recommend a level of sedation that will allow you to relax during your procedure. An in depth consultation prior to administering anesthesia helps to optimize the long-term outcome for your procedure while assuming a minimal risk for complications.
Nitrous Oxide
Nitrous oxide therapy or “laughing gas” is a mild sedative that is commonly used in dentistry. It is a colorless and odorless gas that is administered through a small mask over your nose. This allows you to achieve a level of relaxation as well as reduce pain during the procedure. Nitrous oxide is not addictive and exits the body within a few minutes.
Oral Sedation
Your dentist offers oral sedation for patients who prefer a more moderate level of sedation. Some patients are given oral medications that are administered directly to the affected area while dental work is performed. Others may be put in a deeper state of relaxation, but will still be able to respond to light stimulation. Patients may feel drowsy and fall asleep during the procedure. Those who choose to be sedated are required to follow a few pre-procedural recommendations and have a driver available to assist them on the day of their procedure.
General Anesthesia
General Anesthesia is a controlled state of unconsciousness where a patient cannot feel, see, or hear anything during the procedure. The medication can be administered through various routes and is an extension of deep sedation, helping limit movement and discomfort during dental treatment. A highly trained and specialized anesthesiologist is required to provide this type of anesthesia to assure absolute patient safety. Your dental team is trained to provide this service!
What is IV Sedation Dentistry?
I.V. sedation and general anesthesia enable dentists and oral surgeons to treat patients who would otherwise be unable to receive proper dental treatment without sedation. In addition to allowing oral surgeons to perform lengthy surgeries in just one procedure, sedation gives dentists the ability to treat special needs, fearful, elderly, and uncooperative patients.
Sedation dentistry uses medication to relax patients during procedures. The medication will suppress your awareness of what is going on during the procedure, so you do not experience any pain or anxiety during surgery. At Glen Burnie Oral Surgery Associates we offer light anesthesia, mild to moderate anesthesia, or deep sedation/general anesthesia depending on your situation and the procedure you are undergoing.
While you are sedated, it will feel as though you are asleep throughout the entire procedure. The brain is still technically conscious under I.V. sedation and you will be able to communicate will the Glen Burnie Oral Surgery Associates staff during treatment. However, you will be in such a deep state of relaxation that you will not feel any unease or remember undergoing the procedure.
The Procedure
First, an IV is attached to your arm in order to administer the sedatives to your blood stream. Once you are in a state of relaxation, you will be injected with anesthesia to numb the site of the procedure. Once the procedure has been completed, you will wake up without any memory of discomfort or anxiety. Sedation dentistry allows patients to receive optimal treatment while remaining comfortable. It also allows the oral surgeon to work for a longer period of time while the patient is under sedation, thus requiring fewer appointments to finish the treatment.