What to Expect on the Day of Your Sugery

Coming to our office for the day of surgery and anesthesia is no different than having surgery in a surgical center or hospital although we believe it is much more user-friendly. The equipment in our surgical suites and recovery room are the same as those used in the hospitals. When you arrive in the surgical suite the nurse or dental assistant will connect you to a number of monitors and the anesthetist will start an intravenous (IV) line in your arm. Safe anesthesia demands the use of several non-invasive monitors that we will attach to you. These devices are typically a blood pressure cuff, an EKG (electrocardiogram) and a pulse oximeter (a device that measures the amount of oxygen in your blood). Therefore, it is suggested that you wear loose clothing to facilitate the application of these important devices. Routinely, medications will be injected into the intravenous line and you will promptly feel very relaxed; you may feel yourself falling asleep.

If you have serious fear of needles, we can use Nitrous Oxide gas to put you to sleep initially. Please note that an intravenous will be in place in your arm when you wake up. Once you are asleep, the anesthesiologist will insert a breathing tube through your nose and into your windpipe. This protects the airway and allows the surgeon-unrestricted access to the mouth. This tube will be gone by the time you wake up in the recovery room.

Once you are able to sit up and drink fluids, the intravenous will be removed and you are almost ready to leave. At this time the recovery room nurse will review with you and your family members all the post-operative instructions and answer any questions either of you may have in regards to care of your mouth. Your doctor is always on-call and he can also answer any emergency questions you may have in regards to your care following your surgery.