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| General Dentistry » Sedation - IV and Relative Anaesthesia [Gas] (N2O) |
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Throughout the procedure, your pulse and oxygen levels are measured
using a "pulse oximeter". This gadget clips onto a finger
or an earlobe and measures pulse and oxygen saturation. It gives
a useful early warning sign if you're getting dangerously low on
oxygen, although if your dentist and the nurses are paying attention
they should see it before the machine does). The warning signs
are unresponsiveness and slow breathing. Blood pressure before and
after the procedure should be checked with a blood pressure measuring
machine (a tongue-twister called "sphygmomanometer", which
for obvious reasons is referred to as "sphyg").
What does it feel like? Will I be asleep?
A lot of dental offices use terms such as "sleep dentistry"
or "twilight sleep" when talking about IV sedation. This
is confusing, because it suggests that IV sedation involves being
put to sleep. In reality, you remain conscious during IV sedation.
You will also be able to understand and respond to requests from
your dentist.
However, you may not remember much about what went on because of
two factors: firstly, in most people, IV sedation induces a state
of deep relaxation and a feeling of not being bothered by what's
going on. Secondly, the drugs used for IV sedation can produce either
partial or full memory loss (amnesia) for the period of time when
the drug first kicks in until it wears off. As a result, time will
appear to pass very quickly and you will not recall much, or perhaps
even nothing at all, of what happened. So it may, indeed, appear
as if you were "asleep" during the procedure.
Is it still necessary to be numbed with local anaesthetic?
Will my dentist numb my gums before or after I'm sedated?
The drugs which are usually used for IV sedation are not
painkillers (although some pain-killing drugs are occasionally added,
see below for a more detailed discussion), but anti-anxiety drugs.
While they relax you and make you forget what happens, you will
still need to be numbed. You will not remember having the anaesthetic.
Is it safe? Are there any contraindications?
IV sedation is EXTREMELY safe when carried out under the
supervision of a specially-trained dentist. Purely statistically
speaking, it's even safer than local anaesthetic on its own! |
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