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High River Dental Centre

104 1 ST SW
High River, Alberta T1V 1M6
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High River Nitrous Oxide Sedation

Offering Nitrous Oxide Sedation Dentistry

At High River Dental Centre, our Dental Team will educate you on the method of sedation based on your individual needs will be best for you. We offer High River Nitrous Sedation to help our patients achieve a relaxed, comfortable and calm state during their dental visit.

What Sedation Method is Best for Me?

When considering which type of sedation method is right for you, we conduct a thorough examination that includes discussion regarding your past medical history, the current prescription medications you are taking and discuss the risks associated with undisclosed recreational drug use and the method of sedation used for your visit. We suggest that you bring a detailed list of your medical history, including any medications and nutritional supplements you may be taking to your initial consultation.

What are the advantages of Nitrous Oxide Sedation?

Many of our patients feel sufficiently calmed when we administer nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas. Nitrous oxide dental sedation is a great way for our patients to unwind during treatment, and when it is properly administered, the effects wear off quickly enough that the patient can drive him — or herself home. Some of the more common advantages include:

  • Nitrous oxide dental sedation works very rapidly — it reaches the brain within 20 seconds, and relaxation and pain-killing properties develop after 2 or 3 minutes.
  • The depth of sedation can be altered from moment to moment, allowing the person who administers the gas to increase or decrease the depth of sedation. Other sedation techniques don’t allow for this. For example, with IV sedation, it’s easy to deepen the level of sedation, but difficult to lessen it. Whereas with gas, the effects are almost instant.
  • Other sedation techniques have a fixed duration of action (because the effects of pills or intravenous drugs last for a specific time span), whereas gas can be given for the exact time span it’s needed for. It can also be switched off when not needed and then switched on again (though to avoid a roller-coaster effect, you shouldn’t do this too abruptly).

What are the advantages of Nitrous Oxide Sedation? (continued)

  • There’s no “hangover” effect — the gas is eliminated from the body within 3 to 5 minutes after the gas supply is stopped. You can safely drive home and don’t need an escort.
  • With nitrous oxide, it’s easy to give incremental doses until the desired action is obtained (this is called “titration”). So the administrator has virtually absolute control over the action of the drug, preventing the possibility of accidental overdoses. While giving incremental doses is possible with IV sedation, it’s not possible with oral sedation (as a result, oral sedation can be a bit of a hit-and-miss affair).
  • For certain procedures — those involving gums rather than teeth (e. g. deep cleaning) — it may be possible to use nitrous instead of local anesthesia. N2O acts as a painkiller on soft tissues such as gums. However, its pain-relieving effects vary a lot from person to person and can’t be relied upon.
  • No injection is required. In cases of very severe needle phobia, getting laughing gas first can help you feel relaxed enough to allow the needle required for IV sedation to be inserted in your arm or hand. The very deep state of sedation achievable through IV sedation will then allow you to accept local anesthetic.
  • Inhalation sedation is very safe. It has very few side effects and the drugs used have no ill effects on the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, or brain.
  • Inhalation sedation has been found to be very effective in eliminating or at least minimizing severe gagging.

Learn More about our High River Nitrous Oxide Sedation Options

We always welcome new patients and look forward to meeting their family and friends.

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