Our team wants to help kids stay comfortable and enjoy their visit, even if they’re undergoing more extensive treatments or have dental anxiety. We have options to ensure they can undergo care, with little to no memory of it afterward. In today’s blog, your Round Rock, TX, pediatric dentist talks about dental sedation.

When Children Need Dental Sedation

We may prescribe a calming agent when kids are undergoing more extensive treatments, such as a pulpotomy or a tooth extraction. These can also be helpful with kids who have high anxiety levels or special needs that would otherwise make undergoing even minor treatments a difficult process. The option we choose for your child is based on weight, age, medical history, and anxiety levels. We want to ensure your little ones have a positive experience at our office, and don’t fear their next appointment. Dental sedation can help them stay calm and comfortable, with little to no memory of the procedure afterward.

Our Calming Options

The most commonly prescribed option is nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas. This is administered through a mask over the nose, with the patients inhaling the gas and entering a calm state. We can adjust sedation levels during treatment, and the effects wear off once we remove the mask, so kids can even return to school.

Oral sedation is given in pill or liquid form prior to treatment, and helps kids enter a deep state of relaxation. The effects take time to wear off, so your little one will need to head home afterward and rest. For kids with very high anxiety levels, we have general anesthesia, which means the patient is unconscious during the procedure, with little to no memory of the process at all. In comparison, with nitrous oxide and oral sedation kids are conscious but very relaxed and calm. Again, the effects will take time to wear off completely.

If you have a child who needs to see the dentist but has an intense anxiety about treatment, or if they have special needs or require more extensive treatments, then we can help ensure they enjoy their time in the office with dental sedation options. If you have any questions about our calming agents and how we select the right one for your child, then please feel free to reach out to our team. We want you to feel relaxed and comfortable too!

Your Round Rock, TX, Pediatric Dentist Offers Calming Treatments

Our team strives to ensure your little one enjoys his or her visit to the office, which is why we offer calming solutions for our patients. Give us a call at Pediatric Dentistry of Round Rock at (979)472-4498 for more information or to schedule their next appointment.