A child faces many fears during his/ her childhood. Many of these are real but others are irrational. These fears develop as a result of several influential factors including; experience, conditioning, the domination of culture, learning from history and most important observation. The one fear that is general in almost all children is being scared of going to the dentist.
The Term Sedative Dentistry
Sedative dentistry is the procedure for administering different medications to patients and then perform Dental Cleaning and Examination. There are many drugs and pharmacological agents that are available to be used to put the patient into the state of sleep. For this very reason, it is also given the name “sleep dentistry”.
Degree of Dosage given
But the doctors and especially the pediatric dentists must be aware that there is a various degree of dosage that has to be given to children. This quantity depends upon the age and the level of anxiety the child is experiencing. The levels of dosage are minimal, moderate, deep sedation and general anesthesia.
What is the Process?
Although, the process of sedative dentistry is not a long one there are steps that you have to perform before your child is given the sedative.
To manage nervousness and fear; the parents must explain the process to the child.
Then, carefully follow the instructions given by the pediatric orthodontist.
Ask the doctor if the child could bring a favorite toy along to keep the child calm.
One of the parents is granted permission to stay with the child.
During the process monitor of vital signs of the child.
Take good care of the child post-procedure because he/ she may encounter side effects.
Common types of Sedatives used
There are fundamentally four kinds of sedatives used in dentistry. The use of these types depends on the age of the child and the mental state at the moment.
Laughing gas
Laughing gas is the combination of nitrogen and oxygen and the formula for it is N₂O. This gas has many uses like; fueling rockets, powering racing motors, surprisingly in food to preserve them and medicine. The sedative qualities of it are a favorite anesthetic for children. The children can go to sleep laughing.
Oral Medication
For children too young for an injection; oral medication is given to them. These medicines are in the form of pills or syrups. Many of sedatives are used by children dentists like Pediatric Dentist Tulsa to ensure safe oral care. The child is not asleep but will not feel any pain.
Injecting through IV
Injection of sedative through IV is best for older children who can handle the pain of a syringe. When the dentists want to go through a deeper examination or perform an operation then deep sedation is needed. The time of recovery is longer and more care must be given to the kid.
Deep Sleep Sedation
The children who have a phobia of dentists called Dentophobia; for them general anesthesia is administrated. It sends the child into a deep sleep so that the dentists can perform detailed oral procedures.
Benefits of Sedative Dentistry for your child
Whatever sedative pediatric dentist use on the children; they have the same benefits. Though, it is recommended that you have to take your child to the dentist at least six months. But still, the children can get scared of it and avoid the visit. So parent s can tell them about the following benefits of giving sedation when they go to the dentist.
Relaxing Children during Dental Cleaning and Examination
The very initial advantage of sedative dentistry is that the dentists can work on the teeth of the children without any problem. When children feel anxious and are afraid; they can get a panic attack. This makes it very difficult for the dentists to do any work; so sedatives relax the child.
Painless Pediatric Dentistry
Several processes can be very painful even for an adult; so how a child can bear it? People feel no pain when they are under deep sleep or the area on which the procedure is to be performed is numb. These sedatives take away the sensation for some time until the dentists have done the examination.
Enhanced quality of Medical Care
As parents, if you want that your child receives the best care so make it a point to take your child to a clinic where dentists use medicine to make you relaxed when you visit the orthodontist.
No Fear of Dentophobia
When children will not know what happened at the dental clinic then they will not fear dentists or visiting them. They will think that nothing came to pass and their phobia will gradually go away.
Treatment of Multiple oral problems
Sometimes the dentists have to undergo multiple treatments on a single visit. In which long unconscious state of the child is required; so general anesthesia is the best solution.
Appropriate for all Children
The types of sedatives that are used for Dental Cleaning and Examination are suitable for children of all ages. The dosage range from mild to severe is there so that every kid can be treated well.
