IV Sedation

Sedation Dentistry Makes Going to the Dentist a Dream

• It’s extremely effective for moderate to severe anxiety
• It’s quick-acting
• The level of sedation can be adjusted during the procedure so that you remain comfortable at all times
• In many cases, you can get ALL of your dental work done in one visit

During intravenous sedation (IV sedation), an anti-anxiety drug is administered into the bloodstream to achieve a state of “conscious sedation.” Although you will not actually be asleep, you will enjoy a heightened state of relaxation — and probably won’t remember much about the procedure afterwards. Your appointment will be a dream and hours in the chair will feel like minutes

How IV Sedation Works

IV sedation will put you at ease so you experience little to no discomfort; however, the specialist will also administer a local anesthetic to ensure that you don’t experience any pain. At this point in you’ll be so relaxed that you’ll hardly even notice.

Throughout the procedure, your breathing, heart rate and blood pressure will be closely monitored. Patients generally recover quickly, although they may feel slightly groggy immediately afterwards. IV sedation is extremely safe when delivered by a specially trained dentist or anesthesiologist .Two appointments are usually required. During your first visit, your dentist will describe the benefits and risks of IV sedation, patiently answer all of your questions and give you detailed instructions for the day of your procedure.

On the day of your procedure, you will need to have another adult with you to take you home. You should not perform strenuous activities, drive a motor vehicle or drink alcohol for the rest of the day. Do not take any medications prior to or following surgery unless your dentist has approved their safety.

What does IV Sedation 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 and misleading, 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.