How much do you fear going to the dentist? The intensity of common dental anxiety falls along a wide spectrum. At its very worst, dental anxiety and fear prevent many patients from receiving the routine, urgent, and even emergency dental care that they need. This includes adults and children and can result in people experiencing serious tooth decay, infections, and orthodontic issues for a lifetime that could have been prevented with early and consistent attention.
Dentists in Los Angeles can ensure that your common and natural dental anxiety does not interfere with you receiving the routine, urgent, and emergency dental care you need. Sedation dentistry near you uses sedative drugs tailored precisely to your personal circumstances to make dental treatment comfortable and accessible even in the face of significant dental anxiety.
Just what is sedation dentistry?
Sedation dentistry is a way of helping you relax with sedative medications. There are three primary types of sedation dentistry to provide minimal, moderate, or deep sedation. Each type of sedation dentistry in Los Angeles offers different benefits.
Laughing gas
“Laughing gas” — nitrous oxide —is a sedative agent mixed with oxygen to be inhaled. Nitrous oxide is mild, safe for all ages, and wears off quickly.
Oral sedation
For patients needing a stronger sedative than nitrous oxide, your dentist in Los Angeles can provide a pill to take before treatment begins. You may be prescribed it to take the night before your appointment or shortly before your treatment begins. You’ll be more heavily sedated than if you had inhaled laughing gas but still awake.
Intravenous (IV) sedation
IV sedation is appropriate for the most significant experiences of dental anxiety and the longest or more complex dental procedures. IV sedation is administered through an IV line injected into a vein. Your sedation levels are monitored and adjusted constantly by your dentist and their staff during your treatment.
When should you consider sedation dentistry?
Your dentist will carefully review your medical history, current medications, dental needs, and the extent of your anxiety to determine the best way to provide treatment comfortably. For patients who are good candidates for sedation dentistry generally, sedation dentistry in Los Angeles may be appropriate if you have:
- Difficulty sitting still for as long as your treatment will take
- Particular sensitivity to pain
- Particularly sensitive gag reflex
- Fear and anxiety associated with the anticipated discomfort, sounds, or smells associated with dental procedures
- Soreness in your face and jaw muscles.
How to make sedation dentistry work for you
Depending on the time of your procedure and your level of anxiety, you may be given a sedative to take at home the night before your treatment.
Do not eat during the six hours before undergoing sedation dentistry in Los Angeles. This general rule can be varied in some situations, but only by your dentist. Hydration can be very important to your experience of sedation dentistry, so pay particular attention to your dentist’s instructions about how much water to drink and when.
Do not drive yourself to your appointment or home after any sedation dentistry appointment. Plan ahead for a ride from a ride-sharing service, taxi, family member, colleague, or friend. For 24 hours after sedation dentistry, avoid driving or operating any heavy equipment.
After receiving dental treatment under oral or IV sedation, take some time off from caregiving and work while the sedative effects dissipate and you recover. Just how long you should give yourself to recovery will depend on you and your procedure. Certainly, you should take the rest of the day off.
Is dental anxiety standing in the way of your dental care and good oral health? You do not need to sacrifice your oral health to dental anxiety and fear. Sedation dentistry in Los Angeles can provide options to help you through those obstacles. We are here to help and answer any questions you have.