Patient comfort and safety are of the utmost importance at Trinity River Oral Surgery & Dental Implant Center, which is why we offer multiple forms of outpatient anesthesia. Oral and maxillofacial surgeons are trained to administer all types of outpatient anesthesia, and your needs, preferences, and comfort level will all help your oral surgeon determine the right option for you.
Most dental procedures require some form of anesthesia. If you’ve ever had dental fillings or other procedures performed, you probably received a local anesthetic to numb the area around your teeth. When you undergo an oral surgery procedure, you will likely experience one or more of the following forms of anesthesia:
- Local anesthesia is applied to the area of surgery to prevent pain. Patients who receive only local anesthesia will remain conscious throughout their procedure.
- Nitrous oxide (also known as laughing gas) is administered through a breathing apparatus. It is often used to relax patients for longer procedures or to help patients with higher anxiety.
- IV sedation is given through an intravenous line. Patients who receive IV sedation will be asleep throughout their procedure. For most, the procedure is over before they know it has begun.
The type of anesthesia administered will depend on the extent of your procedure, your health history, and your preferences. When you come in for your consultation appointment, you will have a chance to discuss your anesthesia options with Dr. Kovach. Your surgeon will also give you pre-anesthesia instructions to help you prepare for your procedure. If you have any additional questions about your procedure or your anesthesia options, feel free to give our office a call. One of our staff members will be happy to assist you.
Exparel® For Extended Pain Relief
Our trusted oral and maxillofacial surgeon, Dr. Kovach, takes your comfort and safety seriously and offers the most up-to-date methods for improving your surgical experience before, during, and after oral surgery. One of the challenges medical professionals are faced with today is how to provide effective pain relief to their patients without exposing them to the risks associated with prescribed opioid medications. Fortunately, there are excellent alternatives to opioids, including an innovative and proven pain management medication called Exparel. We are proud to offer this medication to our patients at Trinity River Oral Surgery & Dental Implant Center.
Exparel is an opioid-free pain control medication that is administered by your oral surgeon during surgery in one single dose. This medication is very long-lasting, designed to control pain for several days post-surgery, and is both non-opioid and non-addicting. Because of its proven record for effective and safe pain relief, Exparel is quickly becoming the preference for doctors and surgical patients alike.
Why are opioid-based pain medications dangerous?
Opioid-based prescription pain medications are also called narcotics. These medications have the same active ingredient as the illegal drug heroin and carry significant risks if not used as prescribed. As you may already know, post-surgical pain relief is generally treated with opioid medications, even though these medications have a high risk for dependence. This has led to an opioid crisis in our country, with the deaths of more than 115 Americans each day from opioid overdose and 1 out of 15 surgical patients turning to long-term opioid use after receiving prescriptions post-surgery. In our home state of Texas, we have 4 of the top 25 cities in the U.S. for opioid abuse.
Prescription opioid-based drugs include
- Codeine (only available in generic form)
- Fentanyl (Actiq®, Duragesic®, Fentora®, Abstral®, Onsolis®)
- Hydrocodone (Hysingla ER®, Zohydro ER®)
- Hydrocodone/acetaminophen (Lorcet®, Lortab®, Norco®, Vicodin®)
- Hydromorphone (Dilaudid®, Exalgo®)
- Meperidine (Demerol®)
- Morphine (Kadian®, MS Contin®, Morphabond®)
- Oxycodone (OxyContin®, Oxaydo®)
- Oxycodone and acetaminophen (Percocet®, Roxicet®)
By offering Exparel as a proven alternative to narcotics, Dr. Kovach hopes to protect his surgical patients from the dangers of post-surgical opioid dependence and the other negative side effects that that these drugs carry, such as constipation, extreme drowsiness, nausea, and uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms.
How does Exparel work?
During surgery, your surgeon will administer Exparel directly to the area of your surgery. The medication will begin to numb the pain while you are still in surgery, with a slow release of bupivacaine, an opioid-free local anesthetic. Exparel will continue to work after your procedure, providing strong pain relief post-operatively with that single dose. Exparel will continue to work for your pain relief several days into your recovery period, often eliminating the need for any post-operative prescription pain medications.
- One dose for lasting pain relief. Clinical trials show that surgical patients who opted for Exparel for their procedure experienced strong and effective pain relief for several days into their recovery. Opioid prescription pain medication for post-operative discomfort can, in many cases, be completely avoided.
- Non-addictive/Non-opioid.Exparel is proven post-surgical pain management without the risk of dependence. It is opioid-free and non-addictive.
- No prescriptions to fill. Since Exparel is administered during your surgical procedure and extends its pain-relieving effects for several days into recovery, you are less likely to require expensive and inconvenient prescriptions.
- Less risk of side effects. Exparel is administered in a single dose. This limits the amount of medicine you are receiving and therefore limits the risk for side effects.
By choosing Exparel for your surgical procedure, you can experience long-lasting pain control and reduce the need for opioid medication after your oral surgery.
Exparel in Willow Park, TX
When you come to our practice for your consultation appointment, you and Dr. Kovach will discuss your anesthesia options. He will be happy to speak with you about adding Exparel to your surgical treatment plan. For more information on how Trinity River Oral Surgery & Dental Implant Center can help make your anesthesia and post-operative pain management the safest it can be, please give us a call at (817) 441-5000 to schedule your consultation.