Dental implants are surgically embedded into the jawbone. While surgical procedures may bring about the idea of a patient being fully unconscious, dental implants are only minor surgery.They don’t require complete sedation for treatment to be comfortable.
Dental implant surgery will involve some form of anesthesia or sedation to take place, but the extent of this sedation is entirely up to you and your comfort levels.
How Anesthesia Works for Dental Implant Surgery
Prior to surgery, local anesthesia is applied to the areas receiving implants to ensure your procedure is painless. This process will numb your mouth without numbing your mind, meaning you’ll be fully conscious and aware of your surroundings.
Local anesthesia is administered either through a topical medication or via injection. Advancements in dental technology provide injections using a miniscule needle to minimize any discomfort.
The effects of local anesthetics only last for a few hours, so patients receiving a higher number of dental implants or if their procedure is expected to be lengthy may need a more intensive form of sedation.
Calming Sedation Options
While local anesthesia will dull physical sensations in your mouth, it won’t soothe your nerves. If you have dental phobia or you are anxious about your procedure, there are a variety of sedation choices available to help keep you relaxed throughout dental implant surgery.
Sedation dentistry options range from mild effects such as laughing gas to take the edge off to more intensive methods like IV sedation that result in an extreme sense of relaxation.
To learn more about sedation dentistry, visit our blog on sleep dentistry facts and fiction!
Your dentist will always make sure that proper anesthetics are applied for dental implant surgery to eliminate pain and discomfort, but the level of sedation received depends upon the patient. Factors such as anxiety, pain tolerance, and general health will come into play when deciding which sedation dentistry option is a good fit for you. Do you need dental implants to replace one or more missing teeth? Contact Dentistry at East Piedmont today to learn more about the procedure and find out which sedation dentistry method will best suit your individual needs.
