Glen Wheeler Interviewer: It is time to talk about our teeth. Tonight we’re going to catch up with the clinic again, The Clinic. To find out about dental and oral health, very important dental and oral health – Dr Nima Ferdowsi on the line. Doctor, good evening.

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: How are you Glen?

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: I’m well. Very well indeed, what are we on to tonight, Sleep Dentistry?

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: Yes.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: What the hell is Sleep Dentistry?

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: Well, it’s a great alternative for a lot of patients. It can also be referred to as Twilight Dentistry or Conscious Sedation.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: Which has nothing to do with the time you go to the dentist, it’s about the state your in at the time your in when you’re being operated on.

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: Exactly, it’s a real great alternative. It’s often actually used on patients who have a great fear of anxiety to dental treatments. It’s great alternative to people who put off dental treatment and although I really encourage patients to overcome their anxieties and fears, this could be really good first step to at least have some of the work done. It can also be used for patients who require a bit more complicated treatment or prolonged dental treatment and it allows increased comfort for a lot of people.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: How does it work? What happens?

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: Well, the patient is given a combination of pain reliving drugs and to create this green light state and it is administered often, in our surgeries by anesthetists but there is also some dentists who are trained in administering the anesthetic and after the treatment you wake up and really have no memory or recollection of the procedure.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: So its somewhere between a general anesthetic and…what?

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: Well, yes a general anesthetic is something, which, you’re really…

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: You’re knocked out totally.

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: You’re knocked out totally, you’re not breathing on your own. Sedation is something a little bit lighter, which you can still be responsive depending on how deep you are under the sedation. You’re still breathing on your own, the recovery is a little bit quicker.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: Does the dentist’s still do the monitoring of it and the administration of it? You know, does he still or she do that themselves?

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: So the anesthetist or the trained dentist will be monitoring the patient at all times. There is the monitoring equipment to make sure the blood pressure and brain waves and everything are in the right state. So patients are always monitored, but it really is a safe form of treatment and sedation is done for all forms of medical treatment throughout Australia, its well documented in studies, the safety of it.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: Is it suitable for most dental procedures?

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: We use it for the simplest thing such as sometimes even cleans for some people who are extremely anxious to do fillings or implants or to more complicated dental surgeries.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: What about the preparation time? I mean when we have an anesthetic we’ve got to fast and all of that sort of stuff. Is there any preparation required or special requirements?

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: Yes, there is still a fasting period that’s required usually 12 hours before the surgery. And no water or no food beforehand and that’s really it. Afterwards the recovery is quite quick.  You wake up usually in 20-30 minutes you’re feeling back to normal. Although, for really 24 hours you feel, you really should be accompanied by an adult throughout because you can still have some loss of concentration and coordination. So I wouldn’t suggest people drive home for people having this kind of sedation they should be accompanied by someone else.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: Cost wise, what kind of costs are involved, is it an expensive procedure?

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: It’s actually…it really depends firstly on how long the treatment takes. Usually, most anesthetists charge per hour, it really ranges from one anesthetist to another. The advantage of it is, is that it is covered by Medicare and in some cases up to 80% of the anesthetic costs will be covered by Medicare.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: Ok, well that’s interesting. It’s obviously of interest to people of who as you say struggle or battle or have any sort of panic attacks with dentistry. It’s a nice way to sort of drift off, forget about what’s going on and when you wake up, hopefully – it’s all done and dusted.

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: Exactly.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: Beautiful, well done; thank you for joining us tonight and sharing all of that with us.

Dr. Nima Ferdowsi: Thank you, Glen.

Glen Wheeler Interviewer: Dr. Nima Ferdowsi the dentist talking about Sleep Dentistry.

A fear of the dentist is not uncommon, so we regularly encounter patients with a fear of the dentist in our surgery. However, a fear of the dentist should not stop you to get the treatment you need! To ensure even patients with a fear of the dentist can get the treatment they need, the Bond Street Dental Clinic caters to nervous patients. We have sleep dentistry options available, but our team is also trained to make nervous and anxious patients as comfortable as possible.

Have you cancelled several appointments in the past due to an overwhelming fear of the dentist? Then maybe a visit to our dental surgery before your treatment can help. Many patients experiencing a fear of the dentist find it helpful to visit our clinic beforehand, since they can meet our team and get familiar with the facilities. Then, they can usually decrease their anxiety enough and make their appointment. If you still experience quite a bit of anxiety after your visit, we recommend visiting your local doctor. Your doctor might provide you with some medication to put you more at ease on the day of your appointment. However, if you do get some medication from your doctor, be sure to report this medication to your dentist before your treatment, since certain medications can have an impact on treatments.