Is sedation dentistry safe for children?
Dental appointments can be scary for many people, including kids. This may have led you to consider the merits of sedation dentistry for children like your little ones.
Dental sedation is a procedure whereby the patient is given medicine to help them relax during dental treatment. However, as a parent, you may have wondered: “is sedation safe for kids?”.
Worries about the safety and risks of dental sedation for young ones are highly understandable. Fortunately, there is generally very little reason to fret about this topic, as dental sedation is typically very safe when administered by a suitably qualified professional.
Nonetheless, in this article, we will help put your mind at rest about paediatric dental sedation safety in the UK, providing expert information and advice.
Understanding the risks
Let’s take you through the different types of dental sedation that can be provided for kids:
- Nitrous oxide
Also known as “laughing gas“, this is a commonly used option for helping to relieve dental anxiety in children. It involves the patient inhaling nitrous oxide through a nosepiece.
Intravenous (IV) sedation involves a sedative drug being injected into a vein in the patient’s hand or arm, using a well-designed distraction technique.
This sedation doesn’t put the patient to sleep. It is, though, an especially deep form of conscious sedation for kids. So, you might favour it if your child suffers from particularly severe dental anxiety.
Remember: dental sedation is heavily regulated for patient safety in the UK. Monitoring of the patient’s vital signs is also crucial and provided by compliant dental practices during sedation, including heart rate, oxygen saturation, and respiratory rate.
What is considered safe sedation?
It is important not to confuse conscious with unconscious sedation. Choose conscious sedation for kids in your family, and they won’t be put to sleep for their dental procedure. Instead, they will be awake but relaxed with little to no recollection of the procedure.
By undertaking a thorough review of your child’s medical history beforehand, as well as providing an appropriate dosage and supervising your kid under sedation, a qualified professional will ensure the highest levels of safety.
Meet Dr Will Botha
GDC No 6082094
Dr Will Botha specialises in providing advanced intravenous sedation for dentistry in young children, and also for adult patients.
Will qualified as a medical doctor in South Africa in 2001 and worked in many specialities, but favouring anaesthetics until moving to the UK in 2003.
This gave him a broad basis to build from and in 2008 Will completed a post-graduate diploma in advanced sedation techniques.
Expert opinions for peace of mind
As a parent, you can be reassured that the dental sedation we provide for your child will be carefully administered and monitored.
Addressing common concerns
In addition to sedation, there are various other ways you can help manage your children’s dental anxiety. These include using positive and reassuring language around your child when discussing dentistry, as well as explaining to your child beforehand what will happen during the dental visit in simple, age-appropriate terms. At Toothbeary we do this this by providing a child friendly booklet you can use to read to the child.
When you are seeking out the right dental practitioner for your child, be sure to look for clinics that have good reviews, and that are committed to providing a child-friendly environment, as well as the appropriate approvals required to provide advanced sedation under a certain age.
