We use conscious sedation for a range of reasons to help reduce anxiety and make treatment easier for patients. These forms of sedation are predictable and safe. Our patients elect to have sedation for a variety of reasons, such as longer procedures where they prefer not to have multiple appointments, strong gag reflex, past traumatic experiences. For a mild level of sedation, we can prescribe a tablet to take 30 minutes before your appointment, that will make you feel relaxed and often sleepy. Alternatively, for a deeper sedation we can provide IV sedation, where a similar type of medication is injected into the arm and works instantaneously. This has the benefit of being able to control the effective dosage more precisely and change the level of sedation as required throughout the procedure. These medications take several hours to be eliminated completely from the body and therefore an escort is necessary to make sure you get home safely.

We are also experienced at providing Nitrous Oxide sedation, where a mask is worn over the patient’s nose and an odourless gas is breathed in as required to help control anxiety levels. Nitrous Oxide or “laughing gas” works within a few minutes and wears off quickly, meaning you don’t need an escort or take the rest of the day off to recover.