Dental Phobia: Causes and Treatment through Sedation

Nearly 35 million Americans suffer from anxiety during dental procedures. The collective term for the fear of dentists and dental treatment is ‘dental phobia’ and it has many root causes. Some patients who fear the dentist may have had a traumatic dental experience. Others may have been victims of abuse and dental treatments remind them of their painful experiences and feeling of helplessness. Other individuals have a very sensitive gag reflex which means they choke easily when dental instruments are inserted in their mouths. Still, other individuals are simply affected by the negative portrayal of dentists in the media.

Regardless of the reason, patients should never put off going to the dentist altogether. Good oral hygiene and regular cleanings at the dentist are essential to maintaining good overall health. In fact, poor dental hygiene has been linked to other illnesses like stroke, heart disease and gum disease. Patients who ignore their dental needs face serious health consequences.

So what is the solution to this pervasive phobia? Many dentists now recommend sedation dentistry to help patients with dental phobia receive proper oral procedure. Technology has advanced and patients can now receive various kinds of sedatives that will help them relax during procedures, dull their conscious awareness and temporarily depress the nervous system.

For sufferers of mild anxiety who want a stress-free sedation dentistry Phoenix procedure, nitrous oxide (or laughing gas) is recommended. Patients can inhale a regulated dosage of nitrous oxide through a breathing mask which calms them and numbs their pain receptors. It must be noted that administering any dental sedative requires training and proper certification and only qualified dental professionals can administer it.

For patients who suffer greater levels of anxiety and discomfort, oral conscious sedation (or sleep dentistry) is recommended. Patients are advised to ingest medication an hour prior to the sedation dentistry Scottsdale treatment. The sedative is powerful enough to dull a patient’s conscious awareness so they remember very little about the actual dental procedure and feel no pain. However, patients are not really asleep during the procedure and are cognizant enough to respond to the dentist’s requests.

Another powerful sedative that can alleviate conscious pain and discomfort is IV (Intravenous) sedation. During the sedation dentistry Phoenix treatment, patient’s conscious awareness and pain receptors are dulled. Such is the effectiveness of intravenous sedation that hours seem like minute and patients often ask at the end of the treatment if the procedure has already begun.