For some people, going to a dental appointment is a dreadful experience. Sensitive to pain in general, the thought of pain in their mouths is too great for them to bear. The actual level of discomfort caused by some dental practices is magnified in their mind many times over.
For these individuals, it is much better to see a Houston sedation dentist than to avoid going altogether, or procrastinating until a minor problem compounds into a major condition.
A Sedation dentist can perform all of the general dentistry and cosmetic dentistry procedures necessary to restore a patient to full dental health and a winning smile. He or she can also perform these procedures with the patient in an anesthetized state. While the patient is never completely unconscious, he or she is in such a relaxed state that no pain is felt during dental procedures.
Anxiety-prone who have come to multiple dentist offices for this procedure report that sedation dramatically reduces the usual muscle tension and stress they otherwise always experience when visiting a dentist. This relaxed state of being not only helps the patient feel more comfortable, but it also makes the body much more receptive to the medication used for treatment.
In addition to helping our patients overcome their fears, we are often able turn to multiple appointments into a single visit. We use both oral and intravenous methods of anesthesia delivery, and we can even help Houston patients who normally have difficulty with conventional anesthetic.
For oral sedation, the dentist prescribes oral medication prior to treatment. This produces a very relaxed state of consciousness that produces a sense of comfort and well being. The patient is lucid and able to respond to the dentist, however, and can respond to questions or follow instructions. Throughout the procedure, dental assistants monitor patient vitals.
For intravenous (IV) delivery, a board-certified anesthesiologist comes in to help the sedation dentist performing the procedure. The anesthesiologist reviews patient medical history, consult with their doctor(s) if necessary, and completely manages the anesthesia care while the dental team is working.
We feel that brining in an anesthesiologist is the best way to ensure that all everything goes smoothly to the maximum comfort and benefit of our patients. Residents from all walks of life can benefit from sedation dentistry. Many of these people include those who experience the following phobias and conditions that normally make them put off going to the dentist.
- Fears about dental appointments in general, usually rooted in traumatic childhood memories
- Difficulty achieving numbness from standard Novocain or nitrous oxide
- Have a strong gag reflex that makes any work inside the mouth difficult
- Have highly sensitive teeth
- Have an aversion to the smells and sounds of the dental office.
- Do not like needles going into their mouths.
- Have a complex dental need that would otherwise involve multiple appointments to address.
- Need a full mouth reconstruction
Regardless of the type of procedure performed, Dental offices will also prescribe medicines appropriate to the patient to alleviate any postoperative discomfort. They insist to all patients as well that they have someone drive them to and from the office when having any procedure involving anesthesia performed.
If you have an infected tooth and put off having it treated, you could find yourself in a hospital. An infected tooth will never heal itself, and the infection will spread into the jaw and bloodstream. A root canal is the only safe and proven method of removing this infection. Even if the tooth is pulled, the source of the infection below the gum line will still need to be dealt with.
In addition to cosmetic dentistry services, dental groups routinely perform root canal services for patients. A root canal and tooth restoration normally involves three total steps.
First and foremost, the dentist wants the entire procedure to be comfortable for the patient. The first thing he or she does is to make certain that the area around the tooth being worked on is completely numb.
If the patient has severe anxiety about a root canal, suffers from a strong gag reflex, or proves resistant to Novocain, additional oral or even IV sedation may be applied to medicate the patient properly for the procedure.
If this is necessary, a anesthesiologist may be brought into the office to assist in the sedation aspect of the root canal. Next, the dentist will place a rubber dam around the tooth being worked on.
This isolates the tooth from the rest of the mouth. It also protects the mouth and throat by trapping any debris that would otherwise fall backward. The rubber dam also helps keep the surface tooth dry and accessible so the dentist can work more effectively.
To remove the infection itself, the dentist then makes an opening through the top of the tooth down into the pulp chamber. Using a dental file, the dentist carefully removes all infected tissue and reshapes the root canals to prepare them for filling.
X-rays are taken to make sure all infection has been removed, and then filling material is applied. We recommend the use of composite bonding resin as a dental filling in root canals. There are too many problems associated with silver-mercury fillings, and these substances are by no means bio-friendly, either.
The restorative phase of the treatment is the making and placement of a dental crown. This will protect the tooth, make it stronger and more resilient, and ultimately make it look more attractive.
Each dental crown is custom made to fit the bite and surrounding appearance of teeth. All crowns made in a dental lab are constructed of porcelain, which is super strong, and which looks almost identical to natural tooth enamel. Because each patient is different, and the degrees of infection vary, root canal therapy may take two or more appointments to complete.
Also, it takes time for the lab to manufacture a permanent, porcelain crown. Temporary fillings or crowns are used to protect teeth between visits.
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