General Anesthesia
For Painless Periodontal Procedures
In most cases, dentists who talk about offering “sleep dentistry,” are actually referring to oral conscious and intravenous sedation during which patients are highly relaxed but awake. These forms of sedation dentistry are beneficial for patients with dental anxiety, and those who need complex or multiple procedures. When it comes to caring for patients who need advanced surgical care or have health or pain management concerns that cannot be addressed with more conservative forms of sedation, Peninsula Center for Implantology offers general anesthesia, true sleep dentistry. Dental offices that offer general anesthesia often require patients to receive treatment in a hospital, but we have anesthesiologist, Dr. Philip Yen, provide general anesthesia in our Sunnyvale, CA specialty dental office, creating an environment that patients are already comfortable with.
Why Choose Joe A. Provines, DMD for General Anesthesia?
- A Gentle, Understanding Team
- Kind Dentist with Decades of Experience
- Third-Party CareCredit Financing Available
What is General Anesthesia?
General anesthesia is a way to render a patient completely unconscious during a medical procedure. In some cases, general anesthesia is paired with paralytics to keep patients immobile during treatment, but this is not typically the case with oral surgery. Because most patients will not require the use of paralytics in addition to anesthesia, the process is much simpler for dental patients. In order to render a patient unconscious, a sedative is administered intravenously. Throughout the procedure, additional doses of sedative can be administered via face mask to maintain anesthesia.
Is General Anesthesia Right for Me?
General anesthesia is not frequently recommended. It is viewed as a last recourse for patients who are unable to satisfactorily relax or manage pain with any other sedation option. Some of the most common reasons for administering general anesthesia include:
- Pain management – there are some patients who are still able to feel pain during dental procedures even with local anesthesia and oral conscious or IV sedation. In these cases, general anesthesia may be the only way for patients to receive the care they need.
- Invasive, complex, or multiple procedures – repairing dental trauma, extracting multiple teeth, and other surgical procedures often necessitates general anesthesia to keep patients relaxed and comfortable.
- Muscle control – in procedures that require muscle relaxants or paralytics, it is usually best to administer general anesthesia and control breathing after muscles are relaxed.
- Patients with special care needs – patients who have physical or cognitive impairments that prevent them from safely, comfortably receiving treatment may benefit from being unconscious during procedures.
- Kids – when children need complex dental treatments or surgeries, it may be beneficial to consider general anesthesia as it can be difficult for young patients to stay calm during more complex treatment.