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Sedation dentistry uses medication to help you relax and sit still comfortably when you have dental work done. Sedation is especially helpful if you have oral surgery by relieving any anxiety and making you comfortable. There are varying degrees of medication sedation that can be used such as light or minimal sedation, medium or moderate sedation, and deep sedation.
- Light or minimal sedation includes using medicated gas (like nitrous oxide) to help you feel comfortable while staying fully awake during your treatment.
- Medium or moderate sedation helps you relax even while still awake, but you won’t remember everything. You may be given oral medication to help you relax further and enter a more heavily sedated state of being.
- Deep sedation can be administered through an IV, and you are barely awake.
- General anesthesia places you in a sleep state with the help of IV medication.
Endodontic Surgery
When it comes to your teeth, surgery may be done to save a damaged tooth and avoid extracting it. An apicoectomy or root-end resection can help when there is an infection or inflammation in the jawbone around the end of a tooth after a root canal treatment. Gum tissue near the tooth is taken out, and the end of the root may be sealed with a filling. Stitches may be placed in the gingiva so the bone can heal around the root end.
For an intentional replantation, the tooth is extracted and treated with an endodontic procedure. It is then placed back into its socket. Endodontic surgeries (like fixing a damaged root, removing one or more roots, or dividing a tooth in half) can all be done comfortably using sedation.
Periodontal Surgery
When it comes to periodontal surgery, your gums are treated for gingivitis or periodontitis. Gingivitis is the early stage of gum disease when it is still considered mild. You might notice that your gum tissues are swollen, red and even bleeding. Gum disease starts in the mouth because of poor dental hygiene habits that allow harmful plaque and tartar to build up around the gum line, irritating the tissues. Sometimes periodontal surgery may be needed to treat gingivitis or periodontitis.
Oral surgery can help with the following:
- Get rid of bacteria and infection
- Help stop tooth loss from occurring
- Lessen gaps in the gums between your teeth (black triangles)
- Regrow bones and tissues that were damaged
- Reshape your jaw bone to lessen the chance of bacterial growth in the bony crevices
Types of Gum Surgery
-Bone Grafting: This is when the bone material around the tooth root is destroyed and involves replacing the bone with new bone to anchor the tooth in place and allow it to regrow.
-Flap Surgery: The gums are lifted off the teeth, so tartar can be removed. Then the gums are stitched back into place around the teeth (the bone may need to be reshaped).
-Guided Tissue Regeneration: A small section of mesh-like material is placed between the bone and gum tissue to keep the gum from invading the bone’s space so that the bone and tissue can regrow.
-Tissue Grafting: This is done to stop the gum line recession. The tissue is taken (often the palate) and attached over the receded gums and covers any roots that are exposed.
No matter what type of oral surgery you might need to repair damage in your mouth, there is no need to put it off and let further damage occur. Instead, our doctor is happy to make your surgery as comfortable as possible; before, during, and after so that you can get the best possible oral health care your smile deserves!