When a patient suffers from dental anxiety or dental phobia, varying degrees of dental sedation can be utilized, including conscious sedation with sedatives, nitrous oxide sedation, and IV sedation. These techniques enable patients who might otherwise avoid the dentist to receive dental treatment necessary for a healthy smile.

There are four types of dental sedation methods used by sedation dentists today:

Oral Sedatives
Oral sedative medications such as diazepam can be given to a patient the night before a dentistry procedure or 30 minutes to an hour before the dental appointment, depending on the severity of the anxiety. Oral sedatives do not provide pain relief, so an injection of local anesthetic will also be administered.

Intravenous (IV) Sedation
Like oral sedatives, intravenous (IV) sedation does not provide pain relief, so an injection of local anesthetic will also be administered in conjunction with this method of dental sedation.

Nitrous Oxide Sedation
In one form of conscious inhalation sedation, nitrous oxide gas (also known as laughing gas) is used to induce a state of relaxation. A local anesthetic will be administered in combination with nitrous oxide sedation to eliminate pain.

General Anesthesia
This method of dental sedation refers to the use of anesthetic to render the patient unconscious. Unlike other sedation methods, the patient will be completely unaware of his or her surroundings, making the use of local anesthetic unnecessary.