One of the biggest reasons why 25% of Canadians do not visit the dentist is out of fear. A lot of people become very anxious with the thought of pain involved in various dental restorative procedures. However, West 14 Dental can alleviate this anxiety by offering you sedation dentistry in Saskatoon.

What is Sedation Dentistry?
Sedation dentistry involves using medication to help patients relax during dental procedures. It is also known as sleep dentistry, though not all options involve sleep.

Sedation dentistry in Saskatoon is not a mandatory part of pain management. At West 14 Dental, we offer local anesthesia and numbing injections to alleviate any discomfort. However, sedation dentistry can be used on some patients. These include:

• Young children or people with special needs that become terrified in the dental chair.
• People who move around a lot in the dental chair
• People who have a very low pain threshold.
• Those who have a bad gag reflex.
• People who need to undergo invasive dental restoration work.

Types of Dental Sedation Options at West 14 Dental
There are four main types of sedation dentistry options:

Nitrous Oxide Sedation
Nitrous oxide sedation is a minimal sedation option that involves the patient inhaling nitrous oxide through the nose. The gas allows the patient to relax in the dental chair and its effect is mild enough that it can safely be used on children as well.

Patients who receive nitrous oxide sedation recover quickly once they stop inhaling the gas and can usually be allowed to drive themselves home.

Oral Sedation
Oral sedation involves using pills, like valium and diazepam. This is a moderate form of sedation and is usually performed with nitrous oxide sedation. You may be required to take a pill the night before the dental procedure, one hour before the procedure, or as prescribed by our dentists.

During oral sedation, people become drowsy but most remain awake. Sometimes, the medications can relax you to such an extent that you can fall asleep but can be woken by a gentle shake.

Most patients remain too incoherent to drive themselves home after the procedure, so make sure you arrange another mode of transport or someone to drive you when you come in.

Intravenous Sedation
Intravenous sedation can put you into various degrees of unconsciousness. In the “twilight sleep” stage, you may relax to the point of light sleep. During this sedation, you may not remember many details of the procedure.
When you are given general anesthesia, however, it will put you into a deep sleep, until the effect of the medication wears off. Patients under the effect of general anesthesia do not move around and do not remember anything. This form of sedation is usually given to patients who have to undergo large amounts of invasive surgeries or to small children.

Some people think that general anesthesia is the best form of sedation to alleviate anxiety; however, it may come with a few risks, especially to people who have health issues. Therefore, we recommend using milder forms of sedation.

If you would like us to sedate you during a dental procedure, we will first review your medical history to ensure you will not suffer any adverse side effects. Based on our assessment, we will then recommend a safe sedation method for you.

To schedule an appointment with West 14 Dental, call us at +1-306-933-2114 today.