These Sedation Methods Can Put You At Ease If You Have Dental Anxiety

If going to the dentist makes you feel anxious, you’re not alone. In fact, more than one-third of people in the United States have some level of dental anxiety.

At Gables Sedation Dentistry, our name says it all. We offer a number of sedation methods that can help you feel relaxed, so you can attend your regular dental appointments and get any needed work done without fear.

In this blog, our providers explain the types of sedation we offer.

Nitrous oxide

Popularly known as laughing gas, nitrous oxide acts quickly and wears off quickly. With this option, you breathe gas through a nosepiece, and you stay awake the entire time. Within a few minutes, you should feel a sense of well-being and relaxation. 

We monitor the level of sedation at all times, and the level is often adjusted to follow the steps of your treatment. We may increase the amount of gas when the activities get more intense and decrease the amount of gas when the activities get less intense. 

At the end of your treatment, you breathe oxygen, which quickly flushes the nitrous oxide and its effects from your system. It’s the only sedation method that will allow you to drive to and from your appointment.

Oral sedation

Anti-anxiety medications, such as triazolam, lorazepam, and zaleplon, are the most common choices for dental anxiety. Anxious pediatric patients may receive their sedative in liquid form. 

Taken as a pill, adult-level medications typically take about an hour to provide sufficient levels of relaxation. You’ll feel quite groggy, and you may even fall asleep during your appointment, though it’s easy to wake you if we need to communicate with you.

These drugs affect the memory and coordination, so you’ll need someone to drive you to and from your appointment.

Intravenous sedation

Sedatives can be delivered through an intravenous (IV) line. Since these enter through your bloodstream, they’re fast-acting compared with oral sedatives. IV sedation is best suited for patients with severe anxiety.

Furthermore, most people fall asleep during sedation, and they usually have little recollection of the procedure. This type of sedation is often recommended for people who are having a lengthy procedure.

General anesthesia

With general anesthesia, we typically partner with a qualified anesthesiologist, and you sleep throughout your procedure. This type of sedation is usually reserved for children, patients who are undergoing extensive dental restorations, or those with high levels of dentophobia.

Professional oral care is too important to miss, since even brushing and flossing regularly can’t keep up with the buildup of plaque and tartar. So, if anxiousness is keeping you from going to the dentist, sedation dentistry might be just what you need.

To learn more about sedation dentistry, and to see if it could help you, call 305-518-1822 or book an appointment online with Gables Sedation Dentistry today. We’re located in the Coral Gables neighborhood of Miami.