17 Mar Sedation Dentistry: Don’t Let Fear Keep You from Getting the Dental Care You Need
Dental anxiety is far from uncommon. In fact, as many as 75 percent of us have some degree of qualms about visiting a dentist or other dental specialists. When you need oral surgery, it’s essential to find a way to overcome that fear and get the recommended interventions to preserve your oral health.
Patients with dental fear often turn to sedation dentistry when facing an oral surgery procedure. Sedation dentistry helps patients achieve a state of deep relaxation that makes it easier for them to tolerate invasive interventions and other dental treatments.
For patients who choose sedation dentistry, the oral surgeon will develop a plan for delivery of those medications. The patient has a number of options. Sedatives can be taken in pill form or administered intravenously. Patients can also inhale nitrous oxide gas to get a sedative effect.
In comparison to general anesthesia, which is another alternative, the patient remains conscious, although deeply relaxed. There is no need to maintain the airway artificially, and the effect of sedation wears off more quickly than those of general anesthesia.
Another benefit of sedation dentistry is that patients have no recollection of the procedure after it has been completed. This means that you won’t build up a store of negative memories that reinforce your fear of dental treatments.
Even patients who don’t suffer from dental anxiety can benefit from sedation. They may be able to undergo lengthy, complex surgical procedures in fewer sessions, as they can tolerate longer periods of time while under sedation.
Oral surgeries like wisdom teeth extraction, orthognathic surgery and dental implant placement can have a significant effect on your long-term oral health, but some patients may give into their anxiety and postpone those treatments. If you are one of those patients, consider sedation dentistry as an additional tool to help you get the dental care you need. Contact Charlottesville Oral Surgery & Dental Implant Center at 434-295-0911 to learn more about your options.