Local Anesthesia

When is Local Anesthesia Used in Dentistry?

In order to perform safe and comfortable dental procedures, your dentist will sometimes need to numb a part of your mouth in order to perform an invasive procedure. In this instance the dentist will inject a local anesthesia, like Lidocaine, into your gums or inner cheek.

Types of Local Anesthesia

There are two kinds of numbing injections. The first is a block injection which numbs an entire region of your mouth, such as one side of your lower jaw. The other is an infiltration injection which numbs a smaller area near where the injection was given.

How Local Anesthesia is Administered

If you need local anesthesia in order to have your dental treatment done, your dentist will dry part of your mouth with air or cotton. Many dentists then swab the area with a gel to numb the skin. Then your dentist will slowly inject the local anesthetic. Lasting up to several hours, local anesthesia is often felt by patients as a brief sting which is caused by the anesthetic moving into the tissue.

The dental team at St. Matthews Dental Care will make sure your dental procedures are as pain-free as possible. For more information on local anesthesia, call us at 502-897-3424 to schedule an appointment.