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Sedation dentistry in Jordan Springs and Penrith

If dental treatment is something you dread, sedation can make it manageable. We offer three options here — happy gas, oral sedation and IV sedation — and which one suits you depends on how anxious you are, what treatment you need, and your medical history.

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Omega Dental & Cosmetics shopfront inside Jordan Springs Shopping Centre, with the illuminated sign above the glass entrance

Sedation is often the answer when

  • You've put off dental treatment for years because of nerves.
  • You gag easily or find it hard to keep your mouth open.
  • Local anaesthetic doesn't seem to work well for you.
  • You need a long appointment or several procedures at once.
  • A past dental experience left you unwilling to go back.
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The three options

Happy gas (nitrous oxide)

Breathed through a small nose mask. You stay awake and can talk to us, but feel lighter about what's happening. It wears off within minutes, so you can drive yourself home and go back to work.

Oral sedation

A tablet taken before your appointment. You'll feel drowsy and detached, and may remember little of the visit. You'll need someone to drive you home and stay with you for the rest of the day.

IV sedation

Given through a small cannula in the arm by a visiting sedationist, with the level adjusted through the appointment and your breathing and blood pressure monitored throughout. Most people remember almost nothing afterwards. You'll need to fast beforehand, be driven home, and have someone with you overnight.

Choosing between them

We'll go through your medical history, your medications and what treatment you need, then recommend the lightest option that will work. Plenty of anxious patients find happy gas is enough.

Afterwards

Dentist and dental assistant treating a patient reclined in the dental chair at Omega Dental & Cosmetics, Jordan Springs

Normality returns within minutes with gas.

Sedation via mouth or veins causes drowsiness.

RESTRICTIONS FOR 24 HOURS

  • Avoid driving
  • Avoid machinery
  • Avoid alcohol
  • Avoid signatures

Staff provide instructions and phone numbers.

Other ways to make it easier

Local anaesthetic with extra time and breaks.

General Dentistry

Splitting treatment into shorter appointments.

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For very complex cases, referral for general anaesthetic.

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Risks and things to consider

Sedation is used routinely in dentistry, but it isn't without risk. Happy gas can cause nausea or light-headedness. Oral sedation is harder to control, because once the tablet is taken the effect can't be reduced. IV sedation carries the highest risk: breathing can slow, blood pressure can drop, and the cannula site may bruise. Sedation interacts with a range of medications, and some conditions — including certain heart, lung and liver problems, sleep apnoea and pregnancy — make it unsuitable. Your medical history is reviewed before anything is arranged, and you're monitored throughout the appointment.

What affects the cost

Health fund cover for sedation varies, and some options attract no rebate — we will tell you what you will pay before you book.

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Happy gas costs least and is charged per appointment. Oral sedation costs more. IV sedation is the most expensive, because it involves a visiting sedationist, additional equipment and monitoring, and a longer appointment. The length of your treatment matters too. Health fund cover for sedation varies a lot, and some options attract no rebate at all — we'll tell you exactly what you'll pay before you book.

Happy Gas (Least Expensive)

Happy gas costs least and is charged per appointment.

Oral sedation costs more than happy gas but remains a mid-tier cost option.

IV sedation is the most expensive, because it involves a visiting sedationist, additional equipment and monitoring, and a longer appointment. The length of your treatment matters too.

Who looks after you

Your dentist carries out the treatment. For IV sedation, a visiting sedationist attends the practice, places the cannula, manages the sedation and monitors you for the whole appointment — so the person watching you is doing only that, not dentistry at the same time. Happy gas and oral sedation are managed by your dentist.

Tell us before you book

Let us know how you're feeling about treatment when you make the appointment, and we'll plan it around that rather than the other way around.

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Common questions

Will I be asleep?

No. Sedation isn't a general anaesthetic. You'll be conscious and able to respond, but relaxed and often unaware of time passing. With IV sedation most people remember very little.

With happy gas, yes. With oral sedation, patchy memory is common. With IV sedation, most people remember almost nothing about the procedure itself.

After happy gas, yes. After oral or IV sedation, no — you'll need someone to drive you and stay with you. We won't proceed without that arranged.

For IV sedation, yes — we'll give you exact timings when you book. For happy gas, no. For oral sedation it depends on the medication.

For IV sedation, a visiting sedationist who does nothing else during your appointment except manage the sedation and monitor you. Happy gas and oral sedation are handled by your dentist.

Yes. If anxiety is what's kept you from routine care, sedation for a check-up and clean is a reasonable place to start.

Cover varies widely, and some sedation isn't rebatable at all. We'll give you the item numbers before your appointment so you can check with your fund.

It might be. Sedatives interact with a lot of common medications, including antidepressants, blood thinners and painkillers. Bring a list of everything you take, including anything over the counter.

Happy gas is commonly used with children. Other options depend on age, medical history and the treatment needed, and sometimes referral is the safer course. We'd discuss it with you.

Tell us when you book. IV sedation runs on the days our sedationist attends, so those appointments need planning ahead. Happy gas is usually easier to arrange at shorter notice.

No. What's often called sleep dentistry covers a range of sedation, and we offer three kinds: happy gas, oral sedation, and IV sedation. With IV sedation most people remember little or nothing of the appointment, but you stay breathing on your own and able to respond. That isn't general anaesthetic, which is done in hospital and isn't something we provide here. A visiting sedationist monitors you throughout, and we'll talk through which option suits the treatment you're having and your medical history before anything is booked.