 |
Oral Sedation Dentistry
A Safe and Effective Way to Reduce Visit Anxiety
by Dr. Michael D. Silverman
Are you someone who is anxious or fearful about dental treatment and even worries about it all the time? In a previous article, "Comfortable Dentistry in the 21st Century - Overcoming Fear and Anxiety," we discussed how you can learn to overcome and cope with these negative emotions by developing an open and trusting relationship with your dentist.
This article explains the next step in making your dental visits even more comfortable with the help of oral sedation or anti-anxiety medication. These oral sedatives or "anxiolytics" (dissolve anxiety) are administered by mouth to help transition you from anxiety to comfortable dental procedures.
When you are afraid, your threshold for pain is much lower, and you become hypersensitive to every sensation, prick, and noise. Fear and anxiety trigger the release of certain chemicals like adrenalin which put your "fight or flight" instincts on high alert. You anticipate that something is going to hurt and so you tense your muscles, even if it is subconsciously. In this heightened state of anxiety you experience more pain during and even after treatment. However, this response can be virtually eliminated with oral sedation!
Oral sedation allows you the confidence and peace of mind to experience dental procedures in a whole new way. Hours seem to pass like mere minutes: necessary dental treatment can be performed comfortably because you are relaxed, and your dentist can work more efficiently because he or she can focus more on the work at hand and less on your comfort level.
A variety of oral sedative and anxiolytic medications have been developed especially for these purposes. They have been subjected to rigorous research and testing and have a long safety record after decades of use. In addition several have "amnesic" properties, meaning that you remember little to nothing after treatment.
For more on Oral Sedation Dentistry, read the full print article in Dear Doctor - Dentistry & Oral Health, Volume 2, Issue 2.
|
|
|
|
|
|
