Those of us in the dental industry have to accept a fact about our jobs: people are scared of us! For many people in the world this means avoiding dental care completely, which is the opposite from what we want – we do our jobs because we want to keep people healthy!
If fear is what’s keeping you away from the dentist then you should know that there have been a lot of improvements made to the care we provide! Dentistry has finally come around to be all about providing great results with patient comfort in mind, and that’s a model we’ve embraced at Edgewood Dental Care!
How Can We Make Your Visit Better?
Our Edgewood dentist office makes your experience the greatest measure of success. If you haven’t had a good visit that’s anxiety-free then we haven’t done the best job we can do! We offer a number of anxiety-relief options but there’s one that we feel makes the greatest difference to frightened patients: sedation dentistry.
Sedation At The Dentist?
You’re probably familiar with laughing gas, or nitrous oxide – we’ve been using that for years as a form of sedation! What you might not realize is that we have access to other forms of sedation that are stronger, longer lasting, and great for patients undergoing longer procedures or for those who are not put at ease by nitrous oxide.
Dental sedation has been available for years but has become more popular over time, especially with the emphasis on patient comfort that modern dentistry has. We’re proud to be able to offer you for different levels of sedation – you’re sure to find the right fit at our Edgewood dentist office!
Nitrous Oxide
We discussed this before, but now let’s talk details. Nitrous oxide is delivered via a nose piece that allows us to regulate and monitor the dosage and change it as needed. Nitrous oxide will make you feel relaxed, possibly light-headed, and often causes heaviness in the limbs. Nitrous oxide also raises pain tolerance, making it a great way to get over your fear of pain at the dentist!
Nitrous oxide also wears off quickly – within a few minutes of us removing your mask you’ll feel back to normal! Nitrous is cheap, effective, and trusted – you’ll love the fear and anxiety relief you get with this option!
Oral Conscious Sedation
This is a step up from nitrous oxide, providing much stronger sedative effects that last longer. Before your appointment we’ll prescribe you a pill that you take just before you come in. By the time you sit down in our dentist chairs you’ll already be feeling drowsy and you’ll be well on your way to completely sedated!
Oral conscious sedation still leaves you awake, though definitely in a sedate state. Many patients even fall asleep! Oral conscious sedation is a great choice for patients who are undergoing longer procedures or for those who really don’t want to remember their appointments. Because the drug we use is an amnesic you probably won’t remember your procedure later on!
IV Sedation
Have you ever had a procedure performed at a hospital? If so you might be familiar with “twilight sedation,” a level that leaves you awake but definitely unable to remember anything! Delivered via IV, this level of sedation is incredibly effective and allows us to monitor your vital signs and level of sedation throughout the procedure.
For all intents and purposes you’ll be asleep. If we were to ask you a question you could probably respond but when you think back on your procedure it will just be like you fell asleep and woke up at the end!
Find Out More At Our Edgewood Office!
If you’re avoiding dental care due to fear of pain you don’t have to stay away! With these sedation options we can have you comfortable and relaxed in no time. You won’t be feeling any pain with sedation dentistry!
To find out more about your options for dental sedation call our Edgewood dentist office today! You can reach us at 859-474-7830, or if you’re ready to make an appointment you can do so right here using our online appointment request form. We look forward to making your dental experience a good one!