For around 30 to 40 million people in north America alone almost nothing at all can come close to the fear of the dental surgery. For a significant number of of us that terrifying experience, encountered first as youngsters, stays with us for the remainder of our lives and a visit to the surgery is something we only contemplate when the very worst of tooth ache leaves us with absolutely no alternative.

There are a large number of reasons for steering clear of the dental office including a bad gag reflex, a basic fear of the dentist, an immunity to standard dental painkilling injections, memories of a bad dental experience, and sensitive teeth to name a few.

Nowadays, however, the coming of sedation dentists allows us to obtain the dental treatment necessary without that anxiety and those fears.

Sedation dentists don't knock patients out altogether, but put them into an extremely relaxed state so that they do not feel the slightest pain from the work being done and, invariably, do not even remember the work being undertaken.

There are a variety of choices open to the patient including:

Oral sedation - The patient is given a pill roughly an hour before the appointment. Oral sedation acts to relax the patient but without producing pain relief, so a local anaesthetic injection will also be used.

General anaesthesia - In this case the patient is given an injection to render them unconscious. As the patient is unconscious, a local anaesthetic is not needed for pain relief.

Nitrous oxide - Nitrous oxide gas (also called laughing gas) is used to induce a relaxed state. A local anaesthetic is given alongside nitrous oxide to eliminate pain.

Intravenous sedation - In this case an injection is given to the patient, as opposed to a tablet. As is the case with oral sedation this method doesn't provide pain relief, so an injection of local anaesthetic is also used.

Sedation can be used for quick and simple procedures lasting up to an hour, or for more complex multiple treatments, that may last for as long as perhaps six hours.

The advent of sedation dentists is probably one of the largest improvements to dental care in recent years and enables dentists to perform treatment on patients who would not otherwise think about having treatment.

People who avoid dental work because of anxiety and fear need no longer worry as sedation dentists have made this vital element of our health care system accessible to all.

For more information on sedation dentists visit Sedation Dentists and Dentistry today.