Relieve Dental Anxiety with Oral Conscious Sedation

Your oral health can significantly influence your overall health, comfort, and quality of life. Despite the importance of a clean and healthy mouth, patients frequently hesitate or neglect visiting their dentists, often because of a dental phobia. Cosmetic dentist Timothy Messer believes that dentistry can only help those who seek it, and at our Memphis office, we offer a number of options, including oral conscious sedation, to help alleviate patients’ anxiety so they can receive the treatment their smiles need.

The Difference between Sedation and Anesthesia

Local anesthesia numbs the sending and receiving of pain signals by the nerves in your tooth and its surrounding tissues. It doesn’t affect your consciousness or your perception, but local anesthesia may make it difficult to feel and move your mouth immediately following your procedure. By contrast, sedation is designed to address a patient’s stress and anxiety before and/or during treatment. Depending on the sedative dose, patients may remain fully conscious, partially conscious, or completely unconscious. For the purposes of dental care, however, Dr. Messer only offers conscious sedation, so you can remain awake and in complete control of your vital processes (like breathing).

What Is Oral Conscious Sedation, Exactly?

Oral conscious sedation describes the ingestion method and nature of the sedation most-often utilized at our Memphis dentist’s office. Prior to your procedure, Dr. Messer will give you a sedative pill, the dosage of which will be determined by your weight, medical history, level of anxiety, and how long your procedure should last. You’ll take the pill before your treatment begins, and if necessary, Dr. Messer can administer additional sedatives throughout your procedure. You should plan to spend the rest of the day relaxing, and you will need a responsible adult to drive you home after your appointment.

How Sedation Dentistry Can Help You

Severe toothaches have been considered one of the most excruciating causes of pain. In addition, research shows that poor oral health can lead to greater risks of a variety of systemic diseases. Sedation dentistry helps patients overcome their fear of dentistry so they can find relief from painful and potentially wide-spreading dental diseases. You might benefit from oral conscious sedation if you have an underlying fear of the dentist, or if you require complex treatment that can be completed in less time with the use of sedation.

Is it Safe?

With the use of conscious sedation, Dr. Messer and our dedicated team of dental professionals help avoid many of the dangers associated with deeper sedation techniques. To provide the utmost care to all of our patients, Dr. Messer has undergone specialized training with the Dental Organization for Conscious Sedation (DOCS), and will continually monitor your heart rate and oxygen levels throughout the entire procedure.

Find Out More about Oral Conscious Sedation

Good dental care is about more than cleaning, treating, and improving teeth, it’s also about your comfort and confidence in the care you receive. If you suffer from dental phobia, or you require invasive restorative treatment, schedule an appointment with Dr. Timothy Messer to discuss your eligibility for oral conscious sedation.

Tagged In: Sedation Dentistry, Restorative Dentistry