Sedation Dentistry

Easing dental anxiety

We understand that many people have intense fear or anxiety when visiting the dentist. Sedation dentistry at East Bend Dental can help alleviate those fears so those with anxiety don’t have to avoid going to the dentist.

It doesn’t matter where the dental anxiety came from, maybe it was a bad experience as a child or adult or it has been so long since you’ve had an exam that it gives you anxiety. Every one of our dentists provides compassionate care so your visit can be relaxing and fear-free with the use of our sedation options:

Nitrous Oxide

We offer nitrous oxide for those patients who are just slightly nervous and need a slight reduction in anxiety to complete the procedure. Nitrous oxide, or ‘laughing gas’ has few contraindications and can be used successfully on kids and adults very easily. Call us if you have any questions!

Oral Sedation

Our dental office also uses oral sedation for some oral surgery procedures and for the high anxiety patient. Dr. Fowles was trained in IV sedation, a step above oral sedation, which makes him very comfortable with the latter. Oral sedation is a pill or liquid taken before that appointment that induces relaxation and sleepiness. The level of sedation is titrated to effect based on the patients response. A consultation with the dentist is necessary to determine if oral sedation would be right for you.

PLEASE NOTE: If you choose oral sedation, you MUST have someone drive you TO and FROM your appointment.

There are Advantages to Oral Sedation:

• The patient has the advantage of sedation and at the same time does not have the fees associated with an I.V. sedation.
• It is much easier to administer by mouth.
• It is generally safer and easier to monitor.
• Almost all people respond very favorably to orally administered sedation and do not remember the appointment.

What are the oral medications used?

The most common drug is Halcion (also known as triazolam); it is very closely related to Valium chemically. The differences are that with Halcion there is a much deeper relaxation and amnesia effect than there is with Valium. Again, the type of oral sedation used would be a decision between you and your dentist and will be dependent on many factors.