Forms of dental sedation
Are you nervous about your dental visit? There are various sedation options available to make your visit more comfortable. You sleep, we treat.
Conscious sedation
All conscious sedation procedures are performed by a qualified anaesthetist at our practice.
Benefits:
- No hospital admission
- No hospital costs
- Can have a lot of work done in one session
- Avoid repeated visits to the dentist
- Excellent for nervous or anxious patients
Nitrous Oxide
Nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas. It is used in surgery and dentistry for its calming effects.
What are the advantages of Nitrous Oxide
- Nitrous oxide works very rapidly.
- The depth of sedation can be altered from moment to moment.
- There’s no “after” effect – the gas is eliminated from the body within 3 to 5 minutes after the gas supply is stopped.
- The administrator has absolute control over the action of the drug, preventing the possibility of accidental overdoses.
- For certain procedures – those involving gums rather than teeth (e.g. deep cleaning) – it may be possible to use nitrous instead of local anaesthesia. N2O acts as a painkiller on soft tissues such as gums.
What to expect after treatment
As your dental treatment comes to an end, the nitrous oxide level will be slowly reduced until only oxygen is being inhaled, during this time the effects of the nitrous oxide will start to wear off. You will be able to drive and return to work/home.