My daughter is twenty and has two impacted wisdom teeth. I don’t know how her pediatric dentist missed this but she’s going to our dentist now. We need to get them extracted. I don’t want her in any unnecessary pain, but I also don’t want to use general anesthesia unless it is absolutely necessary. Is sedation dentistry an option or will she need anestheia?
Claudia
Dear Claudia,
You haven’t mentioned any complicating factors in your daughter’s particular case. If that is so and it is simply a matter of your run of the mill impacted wisdom teeth, then using a type of dental sedation known as oral conscious sedation will be more than sufficient.
At your daughter’s age, the bone is still pliable and there hasn’t been enough time for cementum to really gather at the roots of her teeth. Complications at her age are very rare for wisdom tooth extractions.
What Do You Need to Know About Oral Conscious Sedation?
With oral conscious sedation, they will provide her with a pill that she will take before her appointment. It will make her very groggy and unsteady on her feet. Some people call it sleep dentistry because most patients sleep through the entirety of their procedure. She will need you or some other trusted person to drive her to and from her appointment. They’ll also need to stay with her for a few hours after her appointment until she is lucid and steady on her feet.
You can set her up a little area on the couch and let her binge her favorite shows for a while. She’ll mostly need you to help her to the bathroom and make sure everything goes smoothly if she needs any packing changed. Her dentist will provide you with specific instructions for helping with that.
I hope this helps and puts your mind at ease.
This blog is brought to you by Portage, MI Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.