Anxiety Free Dentistry

Continuing our discussion of anxiety over trips to the dentist, this month we’re looking at an American method of allaying patients’ fears. Sedation Dentistry, (also known as oral sedation dentistry, anxiety-free dentistry, and relaxation dentistry) is based around the dentist giving their patient a prescription for a drug such as Valium, Ativan or Sonata.

Available for both general and cosmetic dentistry in London, sedation dentistry can be used for procedures from simple cleaning and root canals to complete smile makeovers. At a dental visit, patient and dentist will agree on the needed treatment. Some of the prescriptions last longer than others, so the amount of time necessary for treatment will help determine what kind of medicine will be prescribed.

The day of the procedure, the patient takes the drug before the appointment—how far in advance will be determined by how long your treatment will take. Some dentists provide Nitrous Oxide (laughing gas) instead of or in addition to prescription medicine. In use for more than 100 years, Nitrous Oxide is particularly good to combine with other sedation dentistry medicines since it provides pain relief and has some anti-anxiety properties.

With a calmer patient, the dentist can accomplish more in a single visit – so you are less likely to need a second visit to complete the procedure. of the available sedation dentistry prescriptions have amnesiac properties, so the patient will have few or no memories of the procedure, and the next day will feel like themselves again—with a newer, more beautiful smile.

Whether such pharmaceutical solutions to patient anxiety are viable in the UK or not, that the options have been explored in the US is worth UK dentists bearing in mind, especially given that patients are looking abroad for their cosmetic dentistry needs in a similar manner to plastic surgery patients.

Posted in: Cosmetic Dentist News
Tags: London, Sedation dentistry, Sedation dentistry London
| June 22, 2010 at 8:48 am | 2 comments

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2 Responses to “Anxiety Free Dentistry”

1. Mary says:

   June 22, 2010 at 9:40 pm

   so does that mean that i should take them instead of a meal, ot just that it supresses my appetite?
2. admin says:

   July 6, 2010 at 3:50 pm

   I wouldn’t advise that.

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