Sedation Dentistry Offers Comfortable Treatment

When you have serious gum treatment on the horizon to manage the disease and keep your smile whole, or if you have gaps in your smile due to tooth loss and require dental implants, then we want to make sure your picture is a comfortable one. In today’s blog, your Encinitas/San Diego, CA, periodontist talks about our approach to dental sedation.

Deciding Which is Right for You

Dental sedation can help you enter a calm and relaxed state, with little to no memory of a more involved procedure. This can also help people with dental anxiety or special needs undergo both minor and extensive procedures, including dental implant placement, so you don’t have dental fears or other concerns stand between you and the smile you deserve. We have three options to choose from and will select the best one for you. Our team will take the extensiveness of the procedure into account, as well as your anxiety levels. We look at any medications you’re currently taking, as well as age, weight, and medical history. For some options, such as IV, a trained anesthesiologist will be on hand to monitor you throughout the procedure.

Three Calming Solutions for Your Smile  

For more minor treatments or for those with anxiety, we may select nitrous oxide, sometimes referred to as laughing gas. You inhale a gas through a mask over your nose and instantly reach a calm and relaxed state. The effects last through the treatment and end once the procedure is over. You remain conscious and able to respond to the dentist, but likely won’t remember the treatment.

The next option is a little more substantial, known as oral conscious sedation. Again, you remain conscious with little memory of the procedure, and the sedation is taken in a pill or liquid from before the procedure begins. We may recommend avoiding food and drink in the hours before the treatment, and urge you to wear loose and comfortable clothing. The effects take time to wear off, so you may be a little groggy and will need someone available to take you home.

The deepest form of calming is IV, and you will enter a much deeper state of calm and again will need someone to bring you home afterward. If you have any questions about our calming treatment options, then contact our team today to learn more. We want to make your visit and treatment an enjoyable one!

Talk to Dr. Kania About Calming Treatment Options

Our team wants to make sure that your gum treatment and dental implant placement is comfortable. To learn more about our approach to sedation dentistry or about any of our treatment options, or to schedule your appointment, give us a call at our office in Encinitas, CA today at 760-642-0711.