Some of the dental services dealing in general dentistry use oral sedation while doing some dental procedures whereas some of the family dentists use nitrous oxide for this purpose. Main purpose of using these sedatives is to maintain dental and oral hygiene along with making the patient fell relaxed during a dental procedure. But it is better that people should which is better and safest sedative of these two. In this write-up we are going to discuss which is a better solution for this purpose and when they should be used.
Nitrous Oxide
In dentistry, Nitrous oxide, also known as Laughing Gas, is used to relax the patients who are afraid of their appointment with their family dentist. It is one of the inexpensive forms of sedation used in general dentistry. Usually, dentists provide this gas through the nose of the patient under the dental procedure. After the completion of the procedure, they give oxygen to the patient to recover him to normal. Thus it helps in making your dental visit comfortable and stress-free if you have anxiety for a dental appointment.
Oral Sedation
Oral sedation, also known as Conscious Sedation, is a powerful form of sedation as compared to nitrous oxide. Though the purpose of both of these sedatives is the same still they are different from each other in many ways as oral sedation is a bit costly than nitrous oxide. Oral sedation is given by dental services in pill form during your visit and before your dental appointment. Though it keeps you conscious during the procedure you do not know what is going on in your mouth. You can answer the questions asked by your dentist but may not remember them after the completion of the procedure.
In this way, oral sedation is perfect for a complicated dental procedure like dental implants, extraction of a tooth, mounting bridges or crowns etc. it is also helpful for the people who have strong chocking reflex, find it difficult to keep their mouth open, physical disability or extremely afraid of dental appointments.
In order to know which sedation is better let us compare their pros and cons
Main benefits of oral conscious sedation:
- It is an effective anesthetic product
- No needle is required
- Being class IV sedation it is safe as general anesthesia
- Decreases the risk of choking
- It decreases soreness in muscles and joints
Benefits of Nitrous Oxide
Though nitrous oxide is the least expensive form of sedation it has more disadvantages than advantages.
Disadvantages of Nitrous Oxide
It cannot be given for a longer period of time during dental visits as compared to oral sedation. It hardly keeps the patient in comfort zone and relaxed. It cannot be used for the patients with difficulty to breathe through the nose as it can be taken only through the nose. It can increase the fear or feeling of fear for the patients with claustrophobia as the nose is covered in this form of sedation. It can cause severe nausea, neurologic problems or increase anxiety due to its side effects. It can also cause mental confusion due to malabsorption of vitamin B12 stored in the body.
Thus after comparing oral sedation vs nitrous oxide it can be concluded that oral sedation is a better form of sedation than nitrous oxide during dental procedures even if it is costlier than the latter one.
