Do You Feel Pain With Oral Sedation?

Sedation dentistry is a type of dentistry using medication to help patients relax during dental procedures. One of the types of sedation dentistry is oral sedation. Depending on the dose given to the patient, oral sedation can range from minimal to moderate. For minimal sedation, you take a pill an hour before the procedure. This pill may make you feel drowsy, but you will still be awake.

For moderate sedation, you will have to take a larger dose. This is the type of anesthesia that is mostly associated with sedation dentistry. Some people may become dizzy enough during this sedation and fall asleep during the dental procedure. They can be awakened, though, by just a gentle shake.

Because of its convenience, oral sedation is common and accepted by most patients. Oral sedation is used for the management of anxiety. This sedation aims to produce a relaxed, lightly sedated, and more cooperative patient that is easier to manage and control pain. Because of its sedative effect, no matter how mild it can be, it is the dentist’s responsibility to tell the patient of the need to have someone who can drive them back home.

The advantage of getting oral sedation near you is that you will not feel any pain during the dental procedures. Instead, you will feel numb during the whole process, and you will not even realize if the dental procedure is happening. However, you might feel some pain after the sedative wears off. This is after the procedure. The dentist will administer pain relievers to help the patient eliminate the discomfort or pain you might experience after the procedure.

The Procedure of Oral Sedation

Before administering the oral sedation, the dentist at our sedation dentistry in West Hollywood must know your medical history. They will ask you if you have some underlying health problems. This is very significant as some patients may have underlying medical conditions which may result in serious side effects when they take some sedatives. In addition, the patient may be under some medication whose performance may be affected by the sedatives.

When your dentist confirms that the patient can receive the sedation, they have to determine the level of sedation to administer to the patient depending on the procedure and how long it will take to undertake.

If the patient is being sedated for the first time, the dentist should give the lowest dosage. After the procedure, the patient is advised to describe the drug’s effect to give the dentist insight into the right amount of dosage the patient should have.

Your dentist is supposed to explain to you the risks involved in the procedure and the side effects of the sedatives. When all this has been done, your dentist can proceed with the procedure using sterilized equipment and professionally.

Several factors may affect the sedation dosage. They include:

• Level of anxiety

Patients who may have significant discomfort right before the dental procedure would require a stronger sedative to help them relax throughout the whole process.

• Medical history

A patient may have underlying medical conditions which may be affected by the administration of the sedatives.

• Age of the patient

When administering oral sedation to older people and young children, precautions should be taken.

• The familiarity of the drug with the dental provider

Before administering the medication, your dentist should be well aware of the components of the oral sedative and its effects on the patient.

When is it Mandatory to Have Oral Sedation?

It is mandatory to have oral sedation as it helps manage mild to moderate anxiety. It also assists a patient is having a restful night before the appointment. In addition, oral sedation is mandatory for patients with medical conditions such as diabetes, epilepsy, cardiovascular disease, and renal/hepatic disease.

Oral sedation should also benefit patients with mental and physical limitations, which prevents them from sitting in the dentist’s chair for long hours. In addition, patients who cannot control body movement and those with ADHD would benefit from oral sedation.

This type of sedation dentistry is available at Dr. Borzoo Ahmadi Beverly Hills. Our staff and dentist will explain the types of sedation and suggest the right one for you.