How Intravenous Sedation Can Enhance Your Child's Dental Care

Dentist Blog

If your child must undergo invasive dental procedures or is overly anxious about regular dental procedures then intravenous (IV) sedation dentistry, like that offered by Dr. Frank W. Sallustio, will often be an important part of their dental care. Intravenous sedation dentistry will help to make any dental procedure pain free and ensure that your child does not do anything that will hamper their dental care.

Benefits of Intravenous Sedation

Intravenous sedation allows the dentist to monitor the amount of medication that will be needed to keep your child pain free as they go through the dental procedure. Consultations are usually done before intravenous sedation in order for the dentist to find out what are normal vital signs for your child. During intravenous sedation your child's vitals will be continuously monitored to make sure they remain normal. Here are the major benefits of IV sedation dentistry.

  • It is pain free.
  • Your child will feel as if they are taking a nap.
  • Your child will still be in control of their breathing and airways during the procedure.
  • Your child will usually have no recollection of the procedure done. This eliminates future dental anxiety.

Preparing Your Child for Intravenous Sedation

Dental procedures that require IV sedation require home preparation from the night before. Here are some important tips that you should follow before IV sedation is performed on your child:

  1. For children under twelve months of age, formula may be given up to six hours before the time of any dental procedure that involves IV sedation.  If your infant is breastfed, they may receive feeding up to four hours before IV sedation.
  2. For older children, solid foods should be discontinued by 12 a.m. on the day of the procedure. Liquids that are cloudy or thick should be discontinued as well. Only liquids that are clear may be given. This means that milk and formula are off limits during this time. However, water and apple juice are good choices for your child.
  3. Medications may still be given unless your child's doctor tells you to stop administering them.

Normal Occurrences after Intravenous Sedation

Soreness of the gum and throat for a few days afterwards is normal and should not be cause for alarm. Your child should be able to go back to day care or school the following day.

Abnormal Occurrences after Intravenous Sedation

A high persistent fever is considered abnormal. Vomiting by itself or with a fever is also cause for concern. Excessive bleeding of the gums and severe pain are also abnormal and will require emergency medical intervention. Call your dentist immediately if you notice any of these signs.

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22 November 2014

The Reasons Why You Should Get A Root Canal

Hi, my name is Kevin Nelson and I want to tell you about my experience. I had a painful tooth so I went to see my dentist. After the examination, he said that I needed to have a root canal to save the tooth. I told the dentist to just pull the tooth instead and then he explained why that wasn't a good idea. He said that pulling the tooth would cause additional problems and then he told me what could happen. I didn't want any more problems, so the dentist did the root canal and I'm glad that he did. I wanted to write a blog to tell others about the benefits of a root canal and what to expect during the procedure. I hope that by getting the word out, other people won't make the same mistake that I almost did by getting a perfectly good tooth pulled.