Providing Better Smiles to Calgary & nearby areas of Alberta

Sedation in Dentistry at Southcentre Dental Clinic

Calgary Sedation Dentistry patient

If you avoid going to the dentist due to dental anxiety, you are not alone. Dental phobia though can be detrimental to your oral health and lead to many more serious issues down the road.

What is Sedation Dentistry?

Dental sedation is a process that involves using medication to place you in a relaxed state during your dental treatments. Calgary dentist Dr. Steven Cload offers oral sedation to all of his patients.

If following an examination of your medical history you are a candidate for sedative medication and wish to receive sedative medication for your appointment Dr.Cload will give you a sedative medication to take one hour before your appointment. During that hour in the office, it will start to take effect.. You will still remain conscious during your procedure, and you will be able to respond to Dr. Cload’s questions. However, you will hardly remember the experience. It will feel as if you slept through your procedure. It takes awhile for the sedation to wear off, so you will need to arrange for someone to drive you home.

Oral sedation can be used for a wide variety of dental procedures. Our Calgary dentist regularly uses this sedation method for patients undergoing general and cosmetic dental procedures as well as for dental implants.

Who Benefits from Dental Sedation? Patients with:

• Dental anxiety
• Sensitive teeth
• A low pain threshold
• Difficulty getting numb
• Complex dental issues which require extensive procedures
• Difficulty sitting still in the dentist’s chair
• An active gag reflex
• Traumatic dental experiences in the past

Dental sedation provides you with several important benefits. It is very helpful when you are undergoing an extensive procedure that takes several hours to perform. Often, complex smile makeovers or restorative procedures which would normally take multiple visits to complete can be performed with fewer trips to our office.

Also, since dental sedation helps alleviate the fears that keep people away from the dentist, you will be more likely to come for your regularly scheduled dental maintenance appointments. This will help you maintain optimal levels of oral health and prevent small problems from developing into serious dental issues which require more extensive and costly treatments.

How Sedated Will I Be?

The most common type of dental sedation we practice relies on oral sedation instead of intravenous drugs. About an hour before your dental sedation Dr. Cload will give you a mild sedative. The medication will help to relax you. We will not start any treatment until you are relaxed.

You will need a ride home after your appointment so you will need to arrange a companion.
You will need to take the day off work but you will be Ok to work the following day.
For many patients the big benefit of sedation is you have very little memory or in some cases no memory of the procedures.

What procedures can you use sedation for?

Sedation can be used for any dental procedure. We don't want fear to be an obstacle to receiving the care you want. We have patients who receive sedation for routine dental cleanings all the way to more complex procedures such as veneers and implants.

Please contact our dentist, Dr. Cload today to learn more about dental sedation services. Southcentre Dental Clinic serves patients in Calgary, Alberta.