17 Aug
0
Dentistry that is painless! Say what!
Is that even real!
The great news is: it is as real as real gets.
Here are a 3 facts for you to know about the tools of the trade:
- One of the most important tool to use to achieve painless dental work, is a painless dental anesthetic. Almost everyone experiences pain upon injection. If we can make this step so light and easy, where will the pain come from? Correct? As a pediatric dentist, I personally prefer a computer generated anesthetic system that is called “Single Tooth Anesthesia”. It looks like a pen, so to the unsuspecting eye, it looks like just another funny gadget you can find at the dentist. The great thing about it is the child feels nothing when it pinches the gums and actually retains sensation in the lips and cheeks. No more chances for the child to bite his lips and cheeks while feeling numb post anesthesia.
- The second best friend for a dentist is the “Laughing gas”. The scientific name for it is Nitrous oxide. It is basically some oxygen mixed with a gas that makes you laugh a little, feel giddy, float less and above all happy. This gas has been used for centuries to make people happy since it has no side effects and is completely safe. Heck yeah they even use it in some countries to aid in delivery of a baby!
- Last but not least, as a parent, it is worthy to know that there are two types of pain: perceived and real. Sometimes a child can have perceived or psychological pain purely from anticipating pain and is screaming bloody murder! If all the steps have been followed and the dentist is absolutely certain the numbing agent is effective, then we always suspect it is the child psychology we need to work on. Sometimes all the painless techniques in the world won’t work, if the child is too anxious and mis trusting to start with. That is why I usually advice parents to come in for an initial friendly visit of just building trust and mutual friendship between dentist and child. This honestly pays dividends if done correctly.
Hope this helped explain this new concept of handling children at the dentist’s office.
Watch this video about more information about the topic.
Please type your comments below or do ask your question if in doubt.
Dr. Yasmin Kottait
DDS, HDD, MFDS Ed, Dip-Hyp CBT, MSc, IBCCES Autism
A pediatric dentist with a special mission: spreading smiles to children wherever she goes.
Currently working in MyPediaClinic in Dubai Health Care City