After you have a dental procedure, whether it’s with an emergency dentist or not, people will often ask “did they knock you out for that?” People usually want to know in order to gauge just how intense a procedure it was, and how much pain you might have experienced or avoided. Morbid curiosity.
If you’ve never undergone an extensive dental procedure before, you might be asking yourself: what are the advantage and disadvantage of general anesthesia vs. local anesthesia?
Staying awake (local anesthesia)
Benefits – You won’t be as groggy for the rest of the day, and most of the time you can drive yourself home. You’ll also be able to respond should a dentist ask you any questions.
Drawbacks – While you won’t feel the pain with local anesthesia, you can still feel the doctor working. If the procedure lasts too long it can get uncomfortable having your mouth open for such a time.
Going under (general anesthesia)
Benefits – You get knocked out, you wake up and it’s over. If you have extreme anxiety just having a cavity filled, then this might be the only way for you when you have a more extensive procedure.
Drawbacks – You’ll need to have someone drive you home because you’re going to be very tired. Also, because a licensed anesthesiologist must be used, it is more expensive to get general anesthesia.
The most important thing to realize is that you have an emergency dentist in Philadelphia, PA who has seen the pros and cons of each of these and will discuss them with you before the procedure. If you’re in need of restorative dentistry, contact us today.