If your child needs to have dental work completed, a sedation dentist can be the best option. At Memorial Pediatric Dentistry, we offer sedation dentistry for patients living in and around the Houston area. We understand that even for adults, visiting the dentist can be an overwhelming or frightening experience due to dental anxiety. This common condition forms from a negative experience or becoming fearful of the general dentistry at a young age. While common, your child does not have to be concerned about visiting our dentist office. We can ensure your child's comfort the entire time.
When you schedule an appointment with David Tang, DDS, let us know if your child has dental anxiety so that we can prepare for your visit accordingly. For many people, the actual procedure is not uncomfortable, rather the anxiety and worry that causes angst. With this in mind, we often prescribe an oral sedative or laughing gas that can be administered to help a patient relax. While this is not a pain killer, it eases the fear and relaxes the body so that your child can remain peaceful while having dental work performed. While the dosage is different, laughing gas can be used on both children and adults so that all of our Houston patients can remain comfortable.
There are various levels and types of sedation. During your consultation David Tang, DDS, will discuss the recommended procedure with you, along with any anxieties your child may have. At that time, a recommendation will be made for the type of sedation you may want to consider. The ultimate decision is based on how you believe your child will handle the procedure. In many cases, our TX patients simply need to relax and prefer to use laughing gas in order to do so. It is quick, effective, wears off when the procedure is finished. Laughing gas does not impair any other bodily functions following the procedure as well. Some patients may even use laughing gas to relax when getting their teeth cleaned since there is no actual pain associated with the treatment.
Regardless of the dental work, patients throughout the area may prefer to use a combination of laughing gas and localized pain medication. We can inject pain medication to numb the area that we are currently working on. As a sedation dentist, this is an effective tool for us to prevent and eliminate discomfort. We can administer as much medication as is necessary throughout the course of the treatment, and only that specific area will remain numb. The benefit of this type of sedation is how localized it is. For example, if a cavity is being treated on one side of the mouth, the other side will remain fully functional. This way, your child can eat immediately after the treatment while the numbing effect wears off the other side.
If a more intensive procedure is required, patients may prefer IV medication for a more thorough effect. Yet, when sedation is administered through an IV, the numbing effect is more pervasive and not confined to that one specific area of the mouth. Many of our patients request this type of medication because they want to ensure that they do not feel anything while having dental work performed. While the effects can still wear off fairly quickly after the treatment is complete, we recommend closely monitoring your child after the procedure.
For those needing oral surgery in TX, total sedation may be necessary or preferable. This is often referred to as sleep dentistry because a patient is put to sleep and will not remember anything from the procedure. As a sedation dentist, we find that this is an excellent solution when a patient is getting a full smile makeover. When the majority of teeth are being worked on, the procedure can take a significant amount of time. David Tang, DDS, needs time to work with precision and not rush through the procedure. With that in mind, many of our Houston patients find it difficult to hold still when the treatment lasts longer than an hour or two. Having the patient go to sleep is a much better option since the patient will remain still, feel comfortable and not remember what took place during the treatment. If this is your preferred method of sedation dentistry, we will monitor your child carefully during and after the treatment to ensure the anesthesia wears off properly. You will also need to keep an eye on your child at home. These procedures typically call for rest and relaxation anyway, so have your child take it easy at home before resuming any normal activities the next day.
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If you live in the local area and are interested in visiting a sedation dentist for your child, call (281) 822-6600 to schedule your appointment. At Memorial Pediatric Dentistry, we will take the time to get to know your child and understand all of your concerns first. Once we have a clear understanding of the situation, we will then make a formal recommendation as to the type of sedation dentistry that you should consider. We will also need to know if your child has any other health issues, risks or allergies. Typically, if your child has responded well to pain medication or sedation in other medical treatments, he or she will do well with sedation dentistry. Still, if you have questions or concerns be sure to discuss them with David Tang, DDS. With any type of dental work, it is important to be well informed and make a decision that you feel is best for your child's health. As such, we want you to be an informed and educated patient. Thanks to modern technology, if your child is afraid of having dental work done or vising the dentist in general, your child no longer has to be. As a sedation dentist, we can ensure that your child's experience is a positive one. Call 281-822-6600 for more information or to get started.
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