Sedation dentistry is immensely helpful to a certain kind of patient. Do you get nervous or anxious at the thought of a simple teeth cleaning? Do your misgivings devolve into a full-on fear of the dentist? Most dangerously, do you find yourself delaying treatment and living with oral discomfort because you are so apprehensive about seeking dental care?

You are not the only person who struggles with a phobia of visiting their dentist. Sedation dentistry alleviates these fears and, depending on the severity of your anxiety, makes everything from a tooth cleaning to invasive procedures infinitely more tolerable for patients who struggle to relax.

Sedation dentistry employs medication during your procedure to help relieve patient stress. The Mile High Smiles team offers oral sedation, wherein the patient takes a safe, gentle, and effective sedative orally.

Once the patient is sedated, several benefits kick in. First, patients become much more responsive to numbing agents, which is good news for those who struggle fully getting numb before a procedure. It also greatly reduces the gag reflex, which makes it easier for the dentist to work quickly and effectively. As the sedative pacifies fears and anxieties, it also transforms even the tensest individual into an ideal patient. This is all great news, as the dentist can focus on treatment and complete his or her work in a much shorter amount of time.

Oral Sedation

The Mile High Smiles team provides patients with oral sedatives in the form of a few small, easy-to-swallow pills. It’s that simple! The few restrictions of which patients should be aware include diet restrictions, especially in the hours preceding your appointment. Similarly, stimulants, smoking, other sedatives, and alcohol may all be prohibited for a period of time both before and after your procedure. Your dentist will provide all the directions you need beforehand. A small fraction of patients do experience hiccups as a side effect, although these only last a few minutes. Some people also note minor, temporary dry mouth as another possible side effect.

Why is this preferable to intravenous medication or gas? The fact of the matter is that there are extremely few scenarios in which such severe sedative methods are necessary. Deep sedation and general anesthesia inherently carry more risk, which is simply not worth it. Mile High Smiles is also dedicated to patient comfort, which (for example) often precludes intravenous sedation. Most patients would not enthusiastically volunteer for an unnecessary needle to be introduced to their dental care procedure.

Oral conscious sedation enables many patients to more confidently seek treatment when they might otherwise have been too intimidated to purse necessary dental care. Oral sedation resolves unreasonable fears, reduces the need for multiple visits, and removes any potential discomfort from the equation. Frankly, oral sedation is perhaps one of the most impactful technological advances of the past 100 years in the realm of oral health.