If you’re nervous about an upcoming treatment like a tooth extraction, root canal, or even dental implant surgery, Dr. Michael Pappas and the team at Washington Court House Dental are here to help. We offer a wide variety of sedation options, ranging from local numbing to IV sedation.
We know that dental sedation can be a bit confusing and can leave you with many questions. What’s right for you? Are they all safe? How much does each one cost? And what are the effects of different types of sedation? In this guide, we’ll break down what you should know, with a specific focus on IV sedation.
Dental Sedation Is Just As Safe As Local Anesthesia
If you’ve ever been to the dentist, chances are that you’ve had numbing injections for local anesthesia. These drugs are meant to eliminate sensation from the nerves near the treatment area. For example, you might get a numbing injection before a filling so that it doesn't hurt when your dentist removes the decayed tooth material.
Local injections are extremely safe and have been used in dentistry for decades. So you may be wondering if dental sedation is as safe as local anesthesia, and if additional sedatives can be used alongside numbing injections.
First, the answer is “yes!” As long as you are cleared for sedation, it’s just as safe as local injections. The medications used for dental sedation are widely used and very rarely have serious side effects.
Because they're so safe, dental sedatives can also be combined with local anesthesia quite easily. For example, you can get local numbing injections to prevent discomfort, as well as IV sedation to keep you feeling calm and comfortable throughout your visit.
So, is dental sedation safer than local anesthesia? As we explained above, the answer is that they're both safe! However, it’s still a good idea for dentists like Dr. Pappas and the team at Washington Court House Dental to take a few steps in order to ensure that you can be safely sedated during your visit.
Before you can be sedated, you’ll need to meet with our team to discuss details such as:
These screenings are essential for helping our team pick the right sedation method based on your health, the dental procedure you need, and your comfort level.
At Washington Court House Dental, we offer a wide variety of sedation options, including nitrous oxide (laughing gas), pill-based oral sedation, and IV sedation. Out of these options, IV sedation is the one that causes the most confusion among patients.
After all, IV sedation looks pretty similar to general anesthesia on the surface. You get an IV in your arm, then you get “knocked out” for your procedure, right? Well, the answer isn’t quite that simple.
Let’s start by discussing IV sedation. This type of sedation uses the same drugs as oral conscious sedation. But instead of being digested as a pill, the medication is delivered right into your arm by an IV needle.
This means that IV sedation has stronger effects than pill-based sedation, and the sedatives start to work almost immediately. The effects of IV sedation also last longer than oral sedation, often up to 2-3 hours. This makes it great for more invasive or complicated dental procedures, or for patients who have severe dental anxiety.
However, IV sedation does not “knock you out.” It’s very common for patients to feel really groggy and even fall asleep during their visit. However, you can be woken up if needed, and you’ll continue breathing on your own throughout your entire appointment.
General anesthesia, sometimes called “TIVA anesthesia” (Total Intravenous Anesthesia) is much different than IV sedation. First, it’s almost always done in a hospital under the watchful eye of a team of board-certified anesthesiologists.
This is because general anesthesia requires lots of specialized equipment and training. It uses a mixture of both IV drugs and gases to make you completely unconscious. It will not be possible for you to be woken up until the anesthesiologists administer the necessary drugs to do so.
The level of sedation with general anesthesia is also so deep that you cannot breathe properly on your own. You will need a breathing machine (ventilator) to ensure that your lungs and heart get the oxygen they need during your visit.
For all of these reasons, general anesthesia is very complicated and costly. It’s rarely used in dentistry and is mostly reserved for very complex and invasive treatments like reconstructive jaw surgery or for patients with special needs. For most dental patients, it’s simply not necessary.
Unfortunately, the answer is “it depends.” The cost of dental anesthesia depends on the type of sedation you choose, the dentist you’re working with, and lots of other factors.
However, there are still some general pricing guidelines that you can keep in mind when choosing the right type of sedation for your procedure:
It’s also important to note that insurance coverage for sedation varies depending on your provider. At Washington Court House Dental, we’re happy to help you make the most of your coverage, and we also offer financing options if you need a little bit more flexibility when it comes to paying for treatment.
Whether you have serious dental anxiety, you’re nervous about an upcoming oral surgery, or you just want to feel more comfortable throughout your next dental visit in Washington Court House, OH, Dr. Pappas and our skilled dental team are here to help.
We offer multiple types of sedation, and during your visit, your dentist can break down their effects, differences, and costs to make sure that you choose the right option for your unique needs. So don’t wait, and don’t let anxiety or intimidation get in the way of the expert dental care you need. Give us a call at (740) 333-7290 or contact Washington Court House Dental to book your next visit.
Call 740-333-7290 or request an appointment online to set up your first visit. We’ll be in touch soon.
