General Anesthesia

General Anesthesia in Boise

Do you feel uneasy about going to the dentist? If your answer is yes, you are not alone. In fact, millions of Americans feel so nervous at the dentist they avoid going altogether. Fortunately, ways to calm those nerves to get you through your dental appointment are now widely available.

Today, different sedation techniques and numerous sedatives are available for patients with dental anxiety, helping deliver essential dental care to people who previously could not even sit still in the dentist’s chair or even just keep their appointments. General anesthesia is one of those options.

General anesthesia has been an important part of the world of dentistry since the 1840s. Dr. Craig Blaisdell offers a licensed dental anesthesiologist who comes to our office to perform this procedure. This is the only form of sedation where the patient is fully asleep. By being able to offer this option in our office, we can give our patients a great (and much cheaper) option versus having to go to the hospital for general anesthesia. In this unconscious state, where there is an absence of fear and anxiety, general anesthesia is used not only for complex dental treatment, but is also occasionally recommended for children and adults who experience acute dental anxiety.

If you’re planning to “go under,” keep in mind that the effects of dental anesthesia may take several hours to wear off. You need to plan ahead and arrange to have someone drive you home. If you aren’t able to make appropriate ride-accommodations, Dr. Craig Blaisdell may recommend a longer stay at the office to ensure complete recuperation from the anesthetics used.

Sleep Dentistry for Eagle ID Patients

Looking for a semi-conscious sedation? You could try “sleep dentistry.” Contrary to its name, sleep dentistry won’t actually put you to sleep. It makes use of sedatives and pain relievers that will put patients into a relaxed or sleep-like state. Sleep dentistry is often used as an anti-anxiety agent to help keep dental patients calm during dental visits, and is frequently used along with local anesthetics. The goal of sedation dentistry is to minimize pain and discomfort during dental treatment. But unlike deep sedation, where dentists use dental anesthesia, conscious sedation dentistry enables you to respond to speech or touch, so you can communicate any discomfort to your sedation dentist.

We want our Eagle ID patients to choose the method of sedation that is right for them. Dr. Craig Blaisdell and his experienced staff are available to answer any questions you might have regarding general anesthesia or sleep dentistry in Boise. Please contact our office today.