Dental clinics of North America
-
Dent. Clin. North Am. · Apr 1999
ReviewMedicolegal considerations for office-based anesthesia in dentistry.
Over the past decade, there has been a virtual explosion in the demand and utilization of office-based ambulatory anesthesia services in dentistry. Not surprisingly, with this increased demand has come an increased exposure to medicolegal risks and concerns for the unwary or unprepared dental practitioner. This article provides the practitioner with a brief overview of the potential medicolegal risks and recent trends in litigation that may arise in today's office-based anesthesia practice.
-
While anesthetic methods and drugs have undergone many changes in the last 100 years, the incidence of complications during the postanesthesia recovery period remains constant. Prompt recognition and treatment of the complications observed during the postoperative period decreases unexpected hospital admissions and the undesirable mortality or morbidity associated with surgery and anesthesia.
-
Dent. Clin. North Am. · Apr 1999
Review Historical ArticleOffice-based anesthesia in dentistry. Past, present, and future trends.
The history of office-based anesthesia dates back to the discovery of nitrous oxide and ether in the 1840s. In recent years, advances in intravenous anesthetic techniques and the rising costs of hospital-based services have combined to promote the practice of ambulatory anesthesia. ⋯ The future of office-based anesthesia in dentistry appears bright. Its development, however, will be influenced by organized dentistry, medical anesthesia, and other groups interested in pain and anxiety control, and state legislatures reacting to public demands for both safe and cost-effective anesthesia care.
-
Many patients can benefit by having dental procedures carried out with conscious sedation administered by the oral or inhalation routes. Dentists who employ these techniques must be familiar with the pharmacology of the agents selected, cognizant of the risks and benefits of the technique employed, and able to manage adverse events that may arise with its use. Careful patient selection and prudent administration of one of the drugs described here is the basis for successful use of these techniques.