Think that relaxing and dental care don’t belong in the same sentence? Think again. Sedation Dental Services allow patients to have comfortable, relaxing dental care without anxiety. Fear of dental care is common and can keep many individuals from having a strong, healthy smile. At Smile Studio in Buffalo, NY, we use sedation dental services to give patients a positive dental experience and alleviate dental fear. We offer several methods of sedation including laughing gas, oral conscious sedation, as well as IV sedation. All three methods are safe and effective. If you are in the Buffalo, NY area and you have been avoiding the dentist, it’s time to find out how we use sedation dentistry to improve your experience and your oral health.

Laughing Gas

Laughing gas has been used in dentistry for over a century to help calm nerves prior to dental treatments. All it requires is the patient to breathe the gas through a nasal mask and within about a minute they will begin to have a warm, comfortable, and relaxed feeling. There are many benefits to laughing gas, they include:

• Fast acting – Patients feel the effects of breathing in the gas almost immediately.
• Easily adjustable – Patients keep the mask on the entire treatment and we’re able to adjust the amount of gas being delivered as needed.
• Safe for all ages – Laughing gas is safe for use on both children and adults.
• No lingering side effects – The effects of laughing gas wear off very quickly, allowing patients to drive themselves home and resume normal activities.

Oral Conscious Sedation

Oral conscious sedation takes sedation dentistry a few steps further than laughing gas. For starters, patients will need to arrange transportation to and from the office. With oral conscious sedation, patients will be prescribed a pill to be taken at home prior to coming into the office for the appointment.

Upon arrival at the office, patients should already be feeling the effects of the medication. Although they will be in a relaxed state, they are still able to respond to instructions. Most patients have little to no memory of the procedure following the use of oral conscious sedation. The medication will wear off gradually, which is why it’s best to plan on resting for the remainder of the day.

The benefits of oral conscious sedation include:

• No injections required – Oral conscious sedation is easy to administer, patients simply must take medication the day of their procedure.
• Safe – Although patients are in a deeply relaxed state, they are not unconscious and are still able to breathe on their own and respond to instructions.
• Eliminates barriers to oral health – The medication is effective at putting patients at ease, allowing the dental team to treat any conditions without emotional trauma, restoring a beautiful, healthy smile.
• Fewer visits ¬– With the patient sufficiently relaxed, the dental team can carry out multiple procedures in just one visit.
• Creates positive experiences – After using oral conscious sedation, many patients are left with positive dental experiences instead of negative ones. In fact, some patients go on to receive treatment without sedation in the future.

IV Sedation

Lastly, we may recommend IV sedation for patients who require extensive, time consuming procedures, or those who have sensitive gag reflexes. IV sedation provides the deepest level of sedation that we offer and requires transportation home following the procedure.

It is important for patients to know that although IV sedation is extremely effective, it does require an injection with a needle. Prior to placing the IV, the skin can be numbed with a topical cream to make the entire process as comfortable as possible. Once the IV is in place, the sedative will be administered, and the patient will feel the effects almost immediately. The effects of the sedation can last up to several hours after the procedure.

The benefits of IV sedation include:

• Fast acting – Once the sedative is administered, patients will almost immediately feel relaxed.
• Customizable – We can customize the amount of sedative given to achieve the level of sedation desired.
• Improved oral health – Allows patients with deep fear and anxiety get the dental care they need.

If you suffer from dental anxiety and would like to learn more about the methods of sedation dentistry, we offer patients in Buffalo, NY, call us at today.