12 Aug Does a visit to the dentist fill you with dread?

Many people don’t like visiting the dentist, it is not necessarily where you want to spend your time.

That said, we think many people now feel it is a much better experience than it has ever been. We take time to make our practices pleasant places that smell good and have a general feeling of friendliness. We take time to make you feel comfortable, chat to you about your choices and include you all the way.

However, there are still some that have a dental phobia. A fear that may go way back to a bad experience as a child or maybe it is totally irrational, there is no explanation for the extreme fear?

Whilst we can employ everyway possible to help you relax during your treatment sometimes more help is required.

For these patients we consider Intravenous Sedation.

What is Intravenous Sedation?

We give you some medicine to make you feel relaxed so you can have your dental treatment without any anxiety, worry and be totally cooperative. We give this medicine as an infusion into one of your veins, usually one in your arm.

How does this work?

The medicine is a relaxant and helps calm you, it also has an amnesic quality which means you don’t remember any of the treatment or even having the treatment, infact time passes very quickly for you.

Is it safe?

Unlike a general anaesthetic, this treatment is called conscious sedation. This means you are still awake and so it is a much safer procedure. You will still need to be assessed medically for your suitability for sedation and this can be done at a consultation with our sedation dentist.

What kinds of dental treatment can be carried out under Intravenous Sedation?

All kinds of treatment can be carried out from simple fillings, to root canal fillings and dental implants.

Our dentist Dr Duncan Park, is very experienced with IV sedation and he works with two sedation nurses during these sessions. He also accepts referrals from other dentists who may not be able to offer this service.

How long does it take to recover?

You will be given enough medicine to last for your treatment. You will not be able to drive yourself home or even go home on your own. We would always want you to be accompanied and we recommend no driving for a further 24 hours.

Will I always need to have sedation for my treatments?

Some patients with severe phobias may require this at every treatment appointment but sometimes we find sedation helps increase your confidence so that you will start to accept small treatments. This often goes on to build more confidence as the phobia becomes broken down.

Our Intravenous Sedation appointments are available following a consultation with Dr Duncan Park at Thackeray Dental Care in Mansfield. He is also happy to accept referrals from dentists in the Mansfield and South Yorkshire area who do not provide this service and would like a specific treatment carried out for their patients.

For more information follow this link.