Interesting information. My son had local anaesthetic for a procedure and he was fine with it - but then he's more high functioning than most and from his very first dental visits I was always in the room with him explaining things.
Mental disabilities/difficulties or not, children will learn how to react to things by observing how you react to things. They are very intuitive and can sense when you're uptight or anxious and they will feed on that.
This is certainly something to monitor with your family physician and to ask your dentist about. Reactions or side effects to nitrous are not very common.
There are alternatives to nitrous, though. IV sedation is often preferred. Some dentists/oral surgeons and pedodontists (dentists that work with children) may also opt for general aesthetic. Although depending on the severity of the disability these too may be decided against.
Many autistic patients will not like having the mask over their mouth and nose, anyway.
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Interesting information. My son had local anaesthetic for a procedure and he was fine with it - but then he's more high functioning than most and from his very first dental visits I was always in the room with him explaining things.
Mental disabilities/difficulties or not, children will learn how to react to things by observing how you react to things. They are very intuitive and can sense when you're uptight or anxious and they will feed on that.
This is certainly something to monitor with your family physician and to ask your dentist about. Reactions or side effects to nitrous are not very common.
There are alternatives to nitrous, though. IV sedation is often preferred. Some dentists/oral surgeons and pedodontists (dentists that work with children) may also opt for general aesthetic. Although depending on the severity of the disability these too may be decided against.
Many autistic patients will not like having the mask over their mouth and nose, anyway.
August 30, 2009 - 4:04pmThis Comment
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