The dental team at Legacy Dental offers several types of sedation based on your personal needs. During your consultation visit, we will discuss your anxiety, your personal preferences, the length of your procedure, and your personal health history. Our sedation options include:
Nitrous Oxide
The first option is nitrous oxide, also referred to as “laughing gas”. If you choose this option, a mask will be placed over your nose, and you will breathe in nitrous oxide. You will feel calm and relaxed within 3 to 5 minutes. The dentist will control the amount of nitrous you are getting and will adjust it during the procedure as needed.
Once the procedure is complete, you will be given pure oxygen to flush the nitrous out of your system. Since the gas leaves your system quickly, you won’t need to have someone drive you home after the procedure.
Oral Conscious Sedation
The second option is oral conscious sedation. You will be given an oral sedative in pill form about an hour before your procedure. Pediatric patients will be given a liquid. This form of sedation will make you feel sleepy, and you might fall asleep. However, if necessary, you can communicate with the dentist and can be woken up easily.
Since this type of sedation does impact your motor skills and memory, you’ll want to make sure you bring someone with you to drive you home following the procedure.
IV Sedation
The third option we offer is IV sedation. This is still considered conscious sedation because you will be able to communicate with the dentist if needed. IV sedation is the best option for patients who have severe dental anxiety or who will be undergoing a long dental procedure.
The sedative will be provided through an IV and during the procedure, your oxygen levels, blood pressure, and heart rate are monitored.
The dosage can be adjusted if necessary, and you can be given medications to reverse the sedation if needed. Most patients who choose IV sedation fall asleep during the procedure and have very little to no memory of the procedure after.
There are many benefits of painless dentistry at Legacy Dental, including:
Reduces Anxiety
The primary advantage of painless dentistry is anxiety relief. Many patients suffer from some level of dental anxiety. They are hesitant to seek treatment due to past experience or because of the horror stories they’ve heard from their friends and family.
When a patient is jittery and/or restless, it becomes more challenging for the dentist to perform the necessary procedures. Sedation relaxes the patient, making them feel more comfortable. When the patient is relaxed, it’s much easier for the dentist to perform the procedures to get the patient back to good oral health.
Reduces Gag Reflex
Most people would agree that a gag reflex is a good thing. It keeps foreign objects from getting into your body. However, it becomes a problem when the dentist is trying to work on your teeth.
In some cases, the dentist needs to get to the back of your mouth to work on teeth, but the gag reflex makes it impossible. In fact, an excessive gag reflex can cause damage or injury to the patient’s mouth. Sedation paralyzes the gag reflex, allowing the dentist to do what needs to be done quickly and efficiently.
Reduces Discomfort
One of the primary reasons that patients avoid dental care is that they are afraid of pain and discomfort. In some cases, it’s because of the noise that the machines make, while others are worried about the pressure, and others are afraid of the needles used to numb the area or the scalpel used to cut into the gum to remove decayed teeth.
Sedation reduces pain and discomfort. In fact, most patients don’t feel anything when they are given sedation. The best part is, especially with oral or IV sedation, most patients have little to no memory of the procedure itself.
Creates a Painless Experience
Anxiety causes your blood pressure to increase, which also increases your sensitivity to pain and discomfort. However, sedation relaxes the patient, creating a painless experience. Patients are conscious, so they can communicate with the dentist if needed, but relaxed enough that they don’t mind the work being done.
Makes Procedures Easy and Fast
When a patient requires multiple procedures in one appointment, sedation is the best option. If the dentist isn’t worried about how you will react during treatment, they can work faster and more efficiently. The patient will remain relaxed and won’t squirm/wiggle while the dentist works.
If you mention that you’re going in for a dental procedure, chances are that someone around you is going to say they had a horrible experience. Most people believe that dentistry is painful and nothing can be done about it. In fact, this is one of the reasons why many people avoid going to the dentist.