Can You Be Put to Sleep During Oral Surgery?

Finding out you need oral surgery to treat a dental problem might send chills down your spine. This is because the pain associated with surgical procedures is excruciating in the absence of anesthesia. Although local anesthesia prevents pain, you might dread dental care procedures in the future if you have dental phobia.

To ensure comfort during invasive dental procedures, dentists use sedation options from mild to deep sedatives. Therefore, your oral surgeon will explain the benefits of the different levels of sedation before the surgical procedure.
If you need to be asleep during the oral surgery in Manalapan, your specialist provides deep sedation.

What Does Deep Sedation Entail?

Do you have severe dental phobia, or are you scared of oral surgery? Oral surgery is invasive and takes long. Therefore, you might need to be asleep during the dental procedure. Your specialist will provide general anesthesia to prevent pain and offer comfort.

When put under general anesthesia, you will be unconscious and won’t remember anything after the oral surgery. After the surgery, your oral surgeon will put you in a recovery room as you await the effects of general anesthesia to go away. However, you might still feel dizzy. Therefore, it’s recommended you have someone drive you home.

Preparing for General Anesthetics before Oral Surgery

Before oral surgery, your dentist will recommend a consultation. During the consultation, your specialist will ask you about your medication, health, and dental history. For example, if you are under blood-thinning medications, your specialist will advise you to stop using them before the dental procedure. Blood thinners can prevent blood clotting during oral surgery.

Fasting for the first six hours before surgery might be necessary. However, you can drink clear fluids before receiving a general anesthetic. If you have diabetes, you should discuss it with your specialist. The doctor will recommend insulin injections during the fasting period in small doses.

Also, if you have sleep apnea, be sure to let your surgeon know so that they monitor your breathing during the surgery.

What to Expect

The oral surgeon or anesthesiologist will deliver sedation anesthesia through your veins. Therefore, you might feel the stinging sensation of a needle before the anesthetics take effect. Once you are asleep, your specialist might insert a tube in your mouth and down your trachea to ensure you get enough oxygen and prevent blood in your lungs.

Alternatively, the specialist will use a laryngeal airway mask. During the surgery, the dentist or oral surgeon will monitor your vitals and correct any complications that might arise from the procedure.

After administering general anesthetics, your doctor will make incisions on your gum and cut through the jaw. Under local anesthetics, oral surgery might be scary. However, while under deep sedation, you will not feel or see anything.

After Oral Surgery

After the surgery, you will still be asleep, and they will move you to the recovery room. In recovery, the effects of the anesthetic will start going away. However, you might still experience dizziness. Therefore, it is advisable to arrange for someone to drive you home.

Some of the side effects of deep sedation include:

• Nausea and vomiting
• Sore throat
• Dry mouth
• Hoarseness
• Muscle aches
• Shivering
• Sleepiness

Also, after the effects of anesthetics go away, you will experience mild pain. The pain will go away after a few days. However, if the pain persists, you should contact your specialist for treatments. To relieve pain after oral surgery, your doctor may recommend pain-relieving medications. For swelling, you can use ice packs.

Are There Risks Associated With General Anesthetics?

Anesthetics that put you to sleep during surgery are generally safe. However, people with chronic conditions might risk complications and discuss with the doctor before the oral surgery. The doctor will then adjust the treatment plan to prevent complications associated with deep IV sedation.

However, older people undergoing other extensive medical procedures and other severe health issues might be at risk of developing post-operative complications. Some of the complications include the risk of pneumonia, heart attack, and stroke.

At Faktor DMD clinic, we discourage the following since they increase the risk of complications:

• Smoking
• Heavy alcohol use
• Lack of physical activity

Call or visit our offices to set an appointment and discuss with our doctor about oral surgery.