Sleep Dentistry

Going to see the dentist whether for a simple check-up, cleaning or a more involving procedure is never an enjoyable experience. Some people find they are able tolerate the pain so manage through the appointment without much fuss.

However, there is also a group of people who have a phobia of seeing a dentist. The thought of someone poking and prodding into the mouth with various dental instruments together with the accompanying pain can be an absolute nightmare. The fear can sometimes be so overpowering that these people avoid seeing a dentist altogether, which poses a greater danger to their oral health.

Hence, for such situations, sleep dentistry can be considered. There are generally four kinds of sedation available – oral sedation, inhalation sedation, intravenous (IV) sedation and general anesthesia (GA). It should be noted that the overarching name of sleep dentistry to describe all the mentioned methods is not totally correct. Not of all them puts a patient to sleep, as in, in an unconscious state. Only general anesthesia does this. With the other three methods, the patient remains conscious, but may experience amnesia and hence feel like they were asleep during the procedure.

This hub will go through each type of sleep sedation dentistry approaches, so by the time you reach the end of it, I hope you have a better understanding and be able make a more informed choice.

This is extremely popular partly because of the simplicity behind how the drug is administered and the cost associated with it. As the name suggests, you just ingest a pill. Well known examples with which you might be familiar include Valium, Halcion, Xanax, and Ativan. The pills are usually taken an hour before the procedure. Because they are a form of sedative, you’ll feel drowsy, so driving yourself to your appointment is strongly not recommended. In some reported cases, patients experience amnesia, which is ideal for the more fearful patients who don’t want to have any recollection of their procedure.

However, success rate of this sedation methodology can be unpredictable. This is mainly because it is not known how well a particular patient’s stomach will absorb the drug. The absorption effectiveness is not dependent on body weight so a dosage that is useless for a small sized woman may turn out to put a large, heavy man to a deep relaxation.

Before accepting this form of sedation, you should ensure your dentist is aware of all your relevant medical conditions as the drugs involved may be unsuitable – e.g. allergies, pregnancy, congestive heart failure, etc.

With this particular method, a mask is placed over the patient’s nose and a combination of nitrous oxide and oxygen is fed through. Another more common term for this mixture of gas is laughing or happy gas. This method has a much higher chance of working than oral sedation. The effect can be felt within minutes of the gas being administered, but at the same time, the effect will go away in a short time after stopping the flow of the gas. Since the after-effects are not long lasting, patients can return to their regular activities more quickly. Also, the level of sedation is easily controlled via the turn of knobs and flipping switches, allowing the patient to achieve the right amount of relaxation.

In this case, the relaxant drug is administered by passing directly through the blood stream. Again, this is more effective than oral sedation. A patient choosing this option usually experiences deep relaxation and sometimes experience partial amnesia. If you have a fear of needles however, you might be reluctant to pick this method. A way to solve this problem is to take a drug orally to calm yourself first, then get the needle shot. You’ll likely still feel the effects of drugs after the treatment, so you’ll need someone else to take you home. Sleep dentists require special permits to carry out this technique.

This is the only method that is a true form of sedation sleep dentistry. It should really only be considered as a last resort. There are high risks involved of which include death, so the decision cannot be taken lightly. For straight forward and especially short procedures, GA should be avoided. Only in the case that the procedure is long as well as complicated, or if the patient suffers from extreme anxiety should GA be given more thought.