What is Sedation Dentistry

Cast aside your dental phobias through sedation dentistry.

Sedation dentistry, as the name implies, is a technique used by a trained dentist to provide a relaxing and anxiety-free experience for people receiving dental treatment. A major benefit to the sedation technique is that people often feel the procedure lasts only a few minutes when in fact, it might have taken hours to perform. Most people rarely feel any discomfort after the procedure.

Many people avoid visiting the dentist because of the common dental phobia. Avoiding regular dental treatment often results in neglect of oral health and appearance, up to and beyond the point when drastic measures become necessary. Sedation dentistry addresses this phobia, allowing people to undergo dental work while avoiding this common apprehension. Additionally, sedation dentistry is such that complex dental procedures normally requiring numerous visits can often be performed in just one or two sittings. Many dentists now offer sedation dentistry; however, the level of experience among dentists in sedation dentistry varies.

What is Sedation?

Sedation is a technique that aims to pharmacologically alter your central nervous system (CNS) to produce an overall calm and relaxed (sedated) sensation. Sedative drugs (tranquillizers, depressants, sleeping pills, anxiolytics, etc.) are used to induce sedation and can be administered in a variety of ways.

Years ago, IV sedation was predominantly used to produce a sedated effect. Today, oral medications are available which are far safer, produce less fear in people, and are easier for dentists to provide. There is also the benefit of a "no needles" approach with oral medications, avoiding the primary fear of many people. In essence sedation dentistry has broken the cycle of fear.

Seeking the advice of a dentist experienced in sedation dentistry, rather than foregoing treatment because of fear and potential pain, gives people the opportunity to undergo critical procedures that they would have otherwise avoided.

Sleep Dentistry or Sedation Dentistry?

Although you are kept awake throughout the sedation process, sedation dentistry has occasionally been dubbed as sleep dentistry. However, the term sleep dentistry is misleading. In actual fact, you do not sleep during the procedure, but because of the sedation effect produced by the medication, you may feel sleepy. If complex medical problems exist that prohibit you from receiving sedation, you may be given a different medication to induce a deeper type of sleep during the dental procedure. This is called general anesthesia, not sedation dentistry.