Posted by MattDDS on August 8, 2002, at 12:29:19
In reply to My dentist wants to use Halcion; concerned, posted by shar on August 6, 2002, at 12:10:29
Hey Everyone,
I'm a 3rd year dental student, and using benzos for long dental procedures is pretty common.
Oral (conscious) sedation with triazolam (Halcion) is used quite often because:1. Some believe Halcion has the side effect of amnesia somewhat more often than other benzos.
This side effect becomes useful in the dental setting, seeing as how most patients prefer NOT
to remember the experience. This is called retrograde amnesia, and the degree to which
people experience this varies.2. It has a short half-life. This allows patients to drive home afterward without being
impaired.I think the bad rap Halcion has gotten in the press is unwarranted. Pharmacologically, it
is not a whole lot different than any other benzo, except for the short half-life.Other strategies include conscious sedation with nitrous oxide or IM midazolam (Versed). In
cases where the patient is extremely phobic, general anesthesia can be used. However, this
would likely be done in a hospital setting. I also emphasize that using general anesthesia is
very rare for general resorative dentistry. On the other hand, it is used regularly in oral
surgery (e.g. 'wisdom tooth' extractions).
I would not be concerned about your dentist using this strategy, and this actually represents
the standard of care for anxious patients.Hope this helps.
Matt
poster:MattDDS
thread:115411
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020807/msgs/115681.html