Information About Your Treatment Including Sedation

• Keep sugary drinks and snacks to mealtimes only.
• Water and milk are the kindest drinks for your teeth. This does not include milkshakes, many contain a lot of sugar.
• If you do have fruit juice and fizzy drinks occasionally, keep them to mealtimes, drink them through a straw and don’t swish them around in your mouth.
• Rinse your mouth with water after sugary drinks or snacks.
• Flavoured water, Fizzy water and fruit smoothies can damage your teeth so limit your intake of these types of drinks and keep to mealtimes.
• Try tooth friendly snacks such as cheese, vegetable sticks, crumpets, bananas, grapes, chappatis, plain yoghurt, oatcakes.

• Fissure sealants provide a protective coating over the top of your teeth
• They try to prevent you from getting any holes by reducing the amount of plaque bacteria and sugar build up in the tiny grooves on your teeth
• They only work if you brush your teeth and gums effectively twice a day especially at night
• The fissure sealant doesn't take long to do and you don’t have to wait to eat and drink after your appointment
• You don’t have to have any sleepy juice or numbing gel for this treatment
• Follow the advice given to you by the Dental Nurse, Dental Therapist or Dentist

• Fluoride is very important for our teeth as it helps to keep them strong and hardens areas of early decay.
• Fluoride varnish is normally applied every 3 months but everyone is different and your Dentist may recommend more or less often.
• The fluoride varnish doesn't take long to do but you must wait 30 minutes before you eat and drink after your appointment– this is so the Fluoride can soak into your teeth and do its job.
• You don’t have to have any sleepy juice or numbing gel for this treatment.
• Follow the advice given to you by the Dental Nurse, Dental Therapist or Dentist.
• If you or your child has asthma or severe allergies let the Dentist or Dental Therapist know as we might have to use a different type of fluoride treatment.

• Hall Crowns are tiny silver helmets or princess crowns for your teeth.
• They stop any bugs or sugars getting inside your tooth and stop a hole from getting any bigger.
• The Hall crown doesn't take long to put on but it might feel abit strange for a couple of days after.
• You don’t have to have any sleepy juice or numbing gel for this treatment.
• A couple of days before we fit the crown, we may have to put little blue rubber hula hoops inbetween your teeth to make enough space for the helmet / crown to fit.
• Follow the advice given to you by the Dental Nurse, Dental Therapist or Dentist.
• If your child has a nickel allergy let the Dentist or Dental Therapist know as we may not be able to offer this type treatment.

• SDF-Silver Diamine Fluoride is a clear liquid containing silver which is antibacterial and fluoride which helps to strengthen the tooth.
• The SDF is painted onto the tooth and stops dental decay progressing
• The treatment is safe, quick and simple to do
• The SDF may stain the area of decay dark brown or black and sometimes the surrounding gum, so we use vaseline to try and prevent staining of the gum and lips
• We can not use it if your child/you have an allergy to metal 
• We can not use it if the decay is too advanced, we might need to take x-rays to identify the extent of the decay
• Speak to the Dentist or Dental Therapist if you have any questions

What is Inhalation Sedation

• Happy air has been used in dentistry for years to help relax patients and make them feel more comfortable about dental treatment.
• It is a combination of nitrous oxide and oxygen, you will breathe the air through a soft comfortable nose mask. We have different colours and smells for you to choose from, see pictures of our machine and nose masks below.

How will it make me feel

• You will feel relaxed and might feel tingling in your body. Some people get giggly, but you will feel normal again before you leave the surgery.

What else do I need to know

• Inhalation sedation is very safe.
• You need to be able to breathe through your nose to have an effective treatment, if you get a cold before your appointment and are not able to breathe through your nose, call to rearrange your appointment.
• Please do not bring other children/siblings to the appointment

Should I eat and drink before my appointment

• You should have a light meal 2 hours before your appointment, drink as normal

Can my child go back to school after the appointment

• We recommend to go straight home after the appointment and rest, please monitor your child for the rest of the day and call us if you have any concerns

When can I eat and drink after the appointment

• If you have had numbing juice, an injection, please wait until it wears off before having anything to eat and only have cold drinks as hot drinks may burn your mouth where you cant feel properly.

What is Intravenous Sedation

• Intravenous Sedation is a form of anxiety control using a drug called Midazalom, it aims to make dental treatment more acceptable
• It is administered via injection, normally into the arm or the back of the hand by a Dentist with specific training in Intravenous Sedation or a Dental Nurse with specific training in Intravenous Sedation

How will it make me feel

• It will make you feel sleepy and/or relaxed, most people remember very little about the appointment.
• It is a very safe, effective and predictable type of sedation and you are closely monitored throughout.

Should I eat before my appointment

• You should have a light meal 2 hours before your appointment and drink fluids as normal
• Do not drink any alcohol on the day of your appointment as this may interact with the sedation drugs

What else do I need to know

• Wear loose clothes on your upper arm, so we can do an accurate blood pressure recording.
• Do not wear nail polish or acrylic nails as this can interfere with some of the readings we take from your fingers
• Continue to take prescribed medications unless advised not to by the Dental Team
• Attend the appointment with your escort only and they should stay with you for the rest of the day
• You should go straight home after your appointment and rest
• Do not drive, operate machinery, use cooking appliances or make any important decisions as your judgement make be affected for 24 hours

When can I eat and drink after the appointment

• If you have had an injection wait until the numbness wears off before eating and only have cold drinks as hot drinks may burn your mouth where you cant feel properly
• Do not drink alcohol for the rest of the day

Before your appointment

• Eat a light meal before your appointment, it is important to eat before having dental treatment unless you are told otherwise by the Dental Team
• Continue to take all regular medications unless told otherwise by the Dental Team
• Please arrive on time or let us know if you are going to be late or can not attend​​​​​​
• Do not plan to do anything strenuous after your extraction

After your appointment

• Soreness after an extraction is normal and if required take over the counter pain medication such as paracetamol
• Avoid disturbing the socket, do not rinse for the rest of the day as this can disturb the healing process
• Do not eat on the side of the mouth where the extraction has taken place for the rest of the day
• Do not smoke for 2 days after an extraction, as this can cause a painful infection of the socket
• The day after the extraction you can rinse a couple of times a day with half a pint of warm water and a teaspoon of salt
• If the extraction site is still bleeding once you get home ring the clinic for advice and in the meantime roll up the gauze given in your pack and bite down on it for 10 minutes