Ikuta D.D.S

Sedation dentistry is a great way to take the anxiety out of a dental visit, but many patients I see have lots of questions about it. For instance, not many patients know that sedation dentistry is different from anesthesia.

With sedation dentistry, you take only a mild sedative and experience what we call ‘conscious sedation’. You’ll be very relaxed, and may drift in and out of a light sleep, but you won’t be rendered unconscious for an extended period of time. The sedative is usually a valium or something similar, and works to ease your anxiety. So it can be used for almost any procedure, from a simple cleaning to other, more complex procedures. If you’re nervous about going to the dentist, be sure and ask for more information on sedation dentistry and the varying forms of conscious sedation.