General anaesthesia can only be administered in a hospital environment, which is why CK Dental, which is located within Nuffield Health Bristol Hospital, The Chesterfield in Clifton, is perfectly placed to offer this service.

Why dental treatment under general anaesthesia?

At our Clifton dental practice, we pride ourselves on our understanding and experience of dental phobic patients – that is, those patients who have a severe phobia of dentists and dental treatment.

We have previously offered these patients the opportunity to undergo dental work under conscious sedation, but although this method works well for the vast majority of people, there are some whose fears are so deep-rooted that they are unable to relax even when sedated, and others who have built up a tolerance to the drugs used.

Who is a suitable candidate for dental treatment under GA?

At CK Dental we are skilled at putting nervous patients at ease. Partly this is because we have created a calm and relaxed environment where we can discuss your procedure in full before you make the decision to go ahead. We often find that patients are able to embark on treatment with confidence when it has been fully explained beforehand.

When this is not the case, and when dental treatment is urgently required, we may recommend that general anaesthesia is used. Dental treatment under general anaesthetic is usually recommended for severely phobic patients, who have not found conscious sedation helpful in allowing them to relax enough for treatment to proceed.

Why does general anaesthesia need to be performed in a hospital?

General anaesthesia does carry some risks, and it is vital that it is carried out in a safe, clinical environment, by an experienced anaesthetist, with expert medical staff on standby.

Because CK Dental is already located in a hospital, we are uniquely positioned to be able to offer this service to our patients without the need for them to enter a new and potentially daunting environment for the procedure.