Sedation Dentist Phoenix
For Patients with Anxiety and Much More
We can’t say it enough – We Care About You! Our dentists want you to feel relaxed and secure when you visit our Phoenix location. We understand that a visit to the dentist can be stressful. That’s why we offer anxiety relief and comforting measures to create a positive experience, including the following:
- Anti-Anxiety Medications: We can prescribe a little pill that will relieve your anxiety prior to your appointments.
- Nitrous Oxide: Your dentist may administer nitrous oxide (laughing gas) to ease anxiety and increase comfort. With nitrous oxide, you can return to work or play right after your dental visit.
- Other Comforts: During your visit, curl up with a comfy blanket, put on headphones to listen to your favorite music and relax!
Most importantly, our skilled experienced doctors know how to instill confidence and make your appointments comfortable while accomplishing as much as possible in the shortest period of time in the fewest number of visits. Our experience will brighten your dental appointment!
Oral Sedation: Taking Fear Out of Dentistry
Visiting the dentist is one of the most common phobias people experience. Often, fearful patients even forgo necessary dental care to avoid a visit to their dentist. If you find yourself feeling panicky at the thought of having your teeth worked on, you should know that a safe and comfortable relaxation method exists. Oral sedation alleviates anxiety so you can face dental appointments with confidence.
What exactly does oral sedation entail?
If you fear dental appointments, call our team to determine if oral sedation is available for you based on your medical history and current medications. If you’re a good candidate for oral sedation, we will select an appropriate anti anxiety or sedative drug for you to take at a predetermined time before your appointment. These safe and widely prescribed drugs diminish anxiety and help patients relax.
Your anxiety level will help us determine dosage, which in turn determines your consciousness level during the appointment. Some patients become so relaxed they drift off into a restful sleep during their dental procedures. Throughout your appointment, we will closely monitor your vital signs to ensure your safety. When you choose oral sedation, you must have a responsible adult who can drive you to and from your appointment and spend some time with you after the appointment until the sedative wears off completely.
Why choose oral sedation?
In general, patients choose oral sedation if they:
- Experience severe anxiety and fear when faced with dental treatment
- Put off important dental treatment because of fear
- Have a sensitive gag reflex
- Have trouble feeling numb after receiving local anesthetic
- Cannot rest comfortably in a dentist’s exam chair due to neck or back problems
What risks and side effects are associated with oral sedation?
The anti-anxiety medications used to achieve oral sedation have been prescribed and studied for years. Potential side effects are widely documented. These drugs are generally safe for most patients and have a low incidence of minor side effects.
Typically, patients who receive oral sedation experience:
- Retrograde amnesia, in which they recall little to nothing about the dental procedure
- Decreased post operative soreness
- Dry mouth
A very small percentage of patients may temporarily have hiccups after using oral sedation drugs.
Nitrous Oxide Sedation
Nitrous oxide has been used for decades to help patients have the calm, comfortable, and stress-free experience they deserve while taking care of their teeth. If you’re wondering why you haven’t heard of this calming solution before, then you might know it by a different name: laughing gas. Below, you will find some helpful information, including which patients are typically candidates and how it works. You can also give us a call if you’d prefer to talk with a member of our Phoenix dental team directly!
Who is a Good Candidate for Nitrous Oxide?
Nitrous oxide is mild enough that it can help both children and adults who struggle with dental-related anxiety. It’s also used to help patients with sensitive gag reflexes, patients who experience head/neck/jaw pain in the treatment chair, and patients who need extensive dental care. So, if you have been putting off scheduling your next appointment due to fear or because of a bad experience you had in the past, don’t hesitate to reach out to us and schedule an appointment. Once we know about your dental history, what you’re allergic to, and if you’re taking any medication, we can determine if nitrous oxide is right for you.
How Does Nitrous Oxide Work?
After you're comfortably seated in the dental chair, you'll inhale the gas (a nitrous oxide and oxygen mixture) through a face mask. After a few minutes of breathing in the colorless, odorless gas, you will begin to feel any anxiety, fear, or stress dissipate. Around the 10-minute mark, you will feel completely at-ease, utterly comfortable, and unable to recognize pain, allowing us to perform your dental work while you stay completely comfortable.
Note: Nitrous oxide does not put you to sleep. You’ll be able to ask questions and respond to the cues we give you throughout your visit. Plus, we will control the amount of nitrous you receive to ensure your safety and comfort every step of the way.
Aftercare for Nitrous Oxide
One of the best parts of nitrous oxide is that the effects start to dissipate immediately. So, within minutes of having the mask off, you’ll feel completely normal! That means that if nitrous is the only anesthesia you receive, you will be capable of driving yourself home following the visit and can continue your daily activities as normal – no need to worry about adjusting your plans or arranging for someone to pick you up.
Sedation Dentistry FAQs
Is sedation dentistry safe for kids?
As with adults, sedation dentistry is generally considered safe for children. In some cases, sedation dentistry actually leads to better oral health, because it helps children who are afraid of the dentist form positive experiences.
We typically recommend nitrous oxide for kids, but oral conscious sedation is also a safe and effective option if your child has severe anxiety or special needs. Just keep in mind that the effects of oral conscious sedation take longer to wear off; you’ll want to keep an eye on your child until they do!
Is sedation dentistry safe while pregnant?
It is possible for the drugs involved in sedation dentistry to be passed along to the fetus. Generally, we recommend waiting to receive invasive-type treatments until after pregnancy. If this isn’t possible, or if you’d like sedation dentistry for anxiety or physical discomfort, we recommend nitrous oxide, as it’s the mildest option.
You should also be aware that sedation during the first trimester could cause developmental complications, while sedation during the third trimester could cause premature labor. The safest time to receive dental sedation during pregnancy, then, is typically the second trimester.
What does it feel like to be sedated at the dentist?
Nitrous oxide tends to make patients feel relaxed and light, almost euphoric. While you likely won’t break out into hyena-esq bouts of laughter, you might feel loose and giggly – hence why nitrous oxide is more commonly known as “laughing gas.”
Oral conscious sedation is like an even deeper state of relaxation. You might even dose off during your treatment! Some patients find they have difficulty speaking clearly, others report feeling “heavy,” and still more say that time seems to pass more quickly.
Does dental sedation put you to sleep?
You might feel so relaxed and at ease that you fall into sleep, but technically, dental sedation doesn’t “put you under” or make you unconscious. This actually helps make dental sedation more widely available, as methods that do induce sleep typically have to be administered by an anesthesiologist.
With nitrous oxide, you’ll be able to respond to gentle instructions and questions but rest assured that your senses will be dulled so that discomfort, loud noises, and bright lights aren’t bothersome. Oral conscious sedation, on the other hand, could make you feel as though you fell asleep even if you didn’t! Basically, you’ll be conscious during your treatment, but sedation dentistry promotes a positive experience.