Sedation Dentistry vs. Sleep Dentistry

For those with dental phobia, seeing the dentist can be an all-encompassing experience in which sleep is lost and troubled scenarios of dental chair disasters take over. Some who have dental phobias like this may have heard of sedation dentistry, while others may hope for sleep dentistry. Then there are those who consider the two terms interchangeable. However, there is a vast difference between the two and which one your dentist allows depends on what you need.

People who suffer dental phobia may also avoid dental appointments. This can affect your health in many adverse ways. Bacteria and toxins building up in your mouth form plaque, which is turned into tartar; gums recede and bleed, and teeth fall out. Your dental phobia can lead to extremely expensive dental work in the future. Because there are tools to make your dental appointment tolerable, there is no need to miss it ever again.

Sedation Dentistry

With sedation dentistry, you are never fully asleep. You are more in a relaxed frame of mind. The type of sedation you may be most familiar with is nitrous oxide, or laughing gas. You breathe this through a mask during your procedure. With this type of sedation, you are calm and unconcerned, which makes you more amenable to instructions. Nitrous wears off quickly, so you will be able to drive yourself home after your procedure. Other types of sedation include:

· Oral sedatives – You may take a pill prior to going to the dentist’s office. You are in a deep state of relaxation, but can still respond to instructions. You will still know where you are and what is going on, but are unconcerned. You may need someone to drive you to and from your appointment if you take an oral sedative.

· IV sedation – An intravenous line is sent directly to your bloodstream. As with oral sedatives, you are in an extremely relaxed frame of mind, but not unconscious. IV sedation may require you to take the day off from work.

Sleep Dentistry

Sleep dentistry is more akin to the kind of anesthesia found in hospital surgery. With sleep dentistry, you will have no recall of your appointment, the work done, and may wake up back in your own home. Sleep dentistry is for those who need very involved dental procedures, or those whose anxiety is severe.

Dentists need to be certified through extra training to perform sleep dentistry. They will have an anesthesiologist present to monitor you vitals, and make sure you are well enough to leave the office.