Ease Your Child's Anxiety with Pediatric Sedation Dentistry
by Harold Coleman
If your child suffers from anxiety and stress, you may wonder if you should wait until your loved one becomes older to see a dentist. Although scheduling a dental appointment for your child may seem like the last thing you should do right now, it's vital that they see a dentist soon. A dentist can make your child's dental experience less stressful with pediatric sedation dentistry. Learn more about pediatric sedation dentistry below.
What Should You Know About Pediatric Sedation Dentistry?
Pediatric sedation dentistry describes the medications or methods used by dental providers to relax and calm anxious children and teens during dental treatments and exams. The treatments allow dentists to provide the various dental care children and teens need throughout their childhood.
Dentists generally use the same types of sedation for children and teens as they use for adults, including nitrous oxide. Nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, is the most commonly used type of sedation used by dentists today.
Nitrous oxide generally contains two ingredients: a light sedative and oxygen. Patients slowly inhale the gas through a small nasal mask. The gas generally doesn't take long to provide the calming effect young patients need to relax. Although it's possible to fall asleep while using nitrous oxide, most patients remain awake during their treatments and exams.
Along with laughing gas, dentists may also use intravenous sedation to calm patients. Dentists administer, or give, intravenous sedation through the veins in their patients' arms. The medication generally takes effect immediately once it enters the bloodstream. Children and teens can still respond to their dentists' commands and questions with intravenous sedation.
If you think pediatric sedation will benefit your child or teen, schedule an appointment with a pediatric dentist today.
What Should You and Your Child Expect?
Before a dentist or their staff administers any sedatives to your loved one, they'll examine your child's mouth. The type of sedation used for your loved one may depend on the type of treatment, procedure, or exam they need to be completed during their appointment.
For example, if your loved one only needs a basic dental exam completed during the visit, a dentist may use nitrous oxide to calm them. If your loved one needs more complex dental work done during their appointment, a provider may use intravenous sedation or another method to complete the work.
Help ease your loved one's anxiety by consulting with a pediatric sedation dentist today.
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About Me
I have never liked my teeth. I had a lot of dental problems, including deep staining and oddly shaped teeth. Every tooth did not have the same shape, and some were rounded while others were more square. Not surprisingly, I never smiled in pictures and not even much in real life. This left people thinking I was mean before they even met me. My dentist told me my best bet to improve the look of my smile was a set of porcelain dental veneers. He said they could make all my teeth white and the same shape. I said I wanted them without any hesitation, and we scheduled my procedures. I love my new teeth, and they really did change my life. I created this blog to help other people living with teeth they don't like realize that they do have options that can improve their smiles and their lives.