What is sedation dentistry?

Sedation dentistry Shreveport, Keithville, Stonewall area

If you experience anxiety around going to the dentist, you are not alone. There are many people who experience worry, anxiety, or even a panic attack when they visit a dental office. This is termed dental anxiety. Even if your dentist is very warm and caring (like both Dr. Adam and Dr. Jana Cormier), you may still have dental anxiety, because it can originate from a bad experience that you had many years ago. Sadly, there are even some people who avoid getting the dental care that they need because they feel so uncomfortable with even the thought of going to the dentist.

Fortunately, if you experience dental anxiety, there is a solution that may help you. It’s called sedation dentistry, and we offer it here at our office in Shreveport.

What is sedation dentistry?

With sedation dentistry, your dentist gives you a medication to help relieve your anxiety. There are two different types of sedation dentistry that we offer here at Cormier Family Dentistry.

Oral sedation

If you receive oral sedation, then we will prescribe you a single pill of a sedative medication (in the same pharmaceutical class as Valium) to take before your appointment. You should take it about an hour before you come to our office, to give it time to start working. You will feel relaxed and even drowsy during your appointment, but you’ll be awake. Keep in mind that this medication makes it unsafe to drive, so you’ll need to arrange for someone you trust to give you a ride to and from your appointment.

Nitrous oxide

Also known as “laughing gas,” nitrous oxide is an inhaled medication that you breathe through a mask. Many patients experience a calm and even euphoric feeling after inhaling this gas. Once you’ve drifted into a comfortable and relaxed state, we will remove the mask and begin your procedure. We can give you more nitrous oxide as needed.

When you are under the effects of nitrous oxide, you will be awake and able to respond, but will be in a very relaxed state. Because it’s short-lived, it wears off fairly quickly after your treatment is finished. You simply wait in our office until you’re back to normal, and you will then be able to drive yourself home.

You will still receive pain control

For either form of sedation dentistry, the medication is given to help control your anxiety level and put you in a relaxed state. It isn’t a substitute for pain control during the procedure. Although you will feel relaxed and even drowsy, the sedative medication doesn’t block the sensation of pain. Rest assured that we take pain control seriously. If you’re having a procedure that may cause pain, you will still receive a local anesthetic in order to keep you comfortable throughout your procedure.

Is sedation dentistry safe?

For most people, sedation dentistry is extremely safe. However, it can be more risky for those with certain medical conditions, and it can interact with certain medications or supplements in a way that could be dangerous. This is why we require a consultation appointment before prescribing the sedative for you. At this appointment, we’ll learn about your medical history and any other medications or supplements that you may take, and do an examination. This allows us to determine whether sedation dentistry is a safe option for you to consider, and which of the options may be better for you.

Rest assured that during your consultation appointment, no dental procedures will be performed. We don’t want the consultation itself to provoke dental anxiety, so we’ll use this appointment solely for the purpose of evaluating the safety of sedation for you. You will come back later, with the sedation, to have any dental work (including professional cleaning) that you may need.

Sedation dentistry Shreveport, Keithville, Stonewall area

If you’ve ever avoided the dentist because you felt dental anxiety, we want to help you to ease this fear and get the treatment that you need. We offer sedation dentistry Shreveport and the surrounding area. Whether you simply need your regular cleaning, or a more involved procedure, sedation dentistry could be an option for you. We invite you to schedule your consultation appointment to learn more.