For some people, the mere thought of going to the dentist causes a cold sweat. Roughly 40 million people in the United States don’t get the dental care they need each year because they have a fear or even phobia related to the dentist.
A particularly bad experience can cause dental anxiety, but many people have always felt anxiety about dental care. At Nobel Dentistry in Los Angeles, California, we want you to enjoy excellent oral health and are dedicated to helping you get the care you need without the anxiety.
Oral sedation can help you feel calm and relaxed during your visit, so you get high-quality dental care without having to fight fear.
Sedation dentistry is safe and allows you to feel relaxed while you get dental care. There are three kinds of sedation dentistry:
As you may have guessed from the name, oral sedation involves taking a sedative in the form of a pill or a liquid. Usually, you take it just before your appointment with Dr. Abraham Nobel.
As the medicine starts to take effect, feelings of anxiety, stress, or fear are gradually replaced by feelings of calm, tranquility, and ease that last throughout your appointment.
Oral sedation produces a calming effect. For some people, it also causes some drowsiness after about 20 minutes. Even though you feel completely relaxed, you also remain fully conscious and can speak and respond to instructions normally.
In addition to alleviating your fear, oral sedation can affect your memory. You may remember only part of your time in the dental chair, or you may not remember your treatment at all.
Oral sedation doesn’t block pain, but don’t worry. We use sedation along with local anesthetic, especially during more invasive procedures like fillings, extractions, or root canals. You won’t get the injection of anesthetic until your sedative is working.
The FDA regulates the medications used in sedation dentistry, and they’re considered safe for the vast majority of healthy adults. Dr. Nobel takes a thorough medical history prior to administering sedation. Our staff makes your safety our No. 1 concern.
The medicines used during sedation dentistry are benzodiazepines, a class of pharmaceutical agents that work by suppressing activity in the part of your brain that controls anxiety, stress, and fear. Few people experience side effects, and if you do, they tend to be minor and temporary.
Dr. Nobel is fully licensed and has a great deal of experience in administering sedation. He closely follows the American Academy of Dentistry guidelines for sedation and monitors your vital signs closely throughout your procedure to ensure your safety.
You should stop eating food six hours before an appointment that’s going to include oral sedation, and you shouldn’t drink anything other than water for at least two hours before your appointment.
You need someone to drive you to and from our office because the medication can make you sleepy. In a perfect world, that person would also stay with you for an hour or so after your appointment just to make sure the medication wears off as expected.
If you’d like to learn more about oral sedation, call Nobel Dentistry or book your appointment online. Our staff is happy to help you understand how it works and if it might be the best way to handle your dental anxiety.
