Dentistry for Nervous or Anxious Patients in East Gosford on the Central Coast, NSW.
Conscious sedation is also known as “IV sedation” or “sleep dentistry”. This suggests being put to sleep, which can be a little confusing as you actually remain conscious during the procedure.
It involves administering medicines via the blood stream. A state of deep relaxation is induced and produces an amnesic effect (i.e. partial or full memory loss) for the period of time of the procedure. Time seems to pass quickly, and it may seem as if you were asleep.
Although you can respond to instructions, you may not remember what has occurred and your ability to speak coherently may be affected.
A combination of medicines are administered via a small injection at the back of the hand to help you relax through the procedure. This allows the anaesthetist (the person administering the medications) to adjust the level of medicines and adjust the level of sedation as required for each procedure.
At VC Dental, IV sedation is administered and monitored by a qualified anaesthetist practitioner who is specifically brought in for your appointment. This service is provided in our dental surgery so you don’t have to travel elsewhere for treatment.
Although conscious sedation is commonly used in dentistry to address problems associated with receiving dental treatment such as patient phobias and anxieties, and extensive dental treatment where the dentist believes the patient may be more comfortable during treatment, IV sedation may not be appropriate for every patient such as during pregnancy or those who may be allergic to certain medicines.
Risks are minimised by carefully monitoring of patient’s blood pressure, oxygen levels and heart rate throughout the procedure.
After the dental treatment, a short recovery time is required before a friend or family member can take you home. You will be drowsy and may want to sleep post operatively.
Sometimes patients can develop a headache or feel nauseous as a reaction to the medications given. It is recommended you rest after the procedure and avoid driving, operating machinery, taking alcohol or making any legal decisions for the next 24 hours.
You are able to return to everyday activities the next day (depending on the dental treatment undertaken). All post- operative instructions are given to both the patient and the carer and should be followed carefully.
At VC Dental, we understand that dental treatment may create anxieties which can prevent people accessing treatment necessary to ensure good dental and oral health. This is why we enable our patients as many avenues to obtain and maintain their overall health in as comfortable and empathetic environment as possible.
For more information on IV Sedation please visit our Sleep Dentistry page here.
Please note, any surgical or invasive procedure carries risks. Before proceeding you should obtain personal advice from an appropriately qualified health practitioner.
