About Sedation Dentistry

Many people are afraid to go to the dentist and have perpetuated this fear over many years of negative reinforcement to get their teeth looked at in a dental office. However, a professional dentist provides sedation dentistry to help keep patients of all ages comfortable and to reduce the fear of having to see a dentist. This sedation option can be used for any type of dental procedure. How it is used will depend on the type of sedation used and the overall level of fear of the patient. A dentist’s goal is to keep their patients as comfortable as possible throughout their entire experience in the dental chair, and if the patient needs to be sedated to perform the dental procedures necessary, it is a good option for everyone concerned.  

Sedation Dentistry Options

Sedation dentistry uses medications to help patients to relax during both routine and complex dental procedures. Most patients are awake just relaxed, so that the scheduled dental procedures can be done comfortably. This is where a minimal amount of sedation is used. For this reason, conscious sedation is when patients remain in a twilight and may not remember the procedure. On the other hand, a deep sedation is where patients are near unconscious with the use of general anesthesia to relax the patient during procedures.

Inhaled minimal sedation or laughing gas helps all patients to relax when they go to the dentist. Oral sedation is a pill that is oftentimes taken before coming to the dental office, similar to Valium, to relax the patient. In this case, the IV sedation is a quicker sedation dentistry option that can be adjusted throughout the experience. This can be either moderate or fully deep sedation where a patient is “knocked out” during their dental work. This is especially great for younger children who may need a lot of dental work and won’t be able to relax and sit still, or who may experience anxiety when going to the dentist.

Schedule an Appointment to Learn About Sedation Dentistry Today

When you’re interested in learning more about sedation dentistry, and want to know if sedation procedures can be useful to you for your next scheduled complex dental procedure, call Cochran Family Dental to schedule an appointment with a Leesburg, VA dentist. We serve the cities of Leesburg, Ashburn and Purcellville with the modern and comprehensive dental care services. We can inform you on all of the available sedation dentistry options that we can offer and help you to decide which one will benefit you the most. Call us today to schedule an appointment at 703-771-9034.