DH 280 - Pain and Anxiety Control

Credit Hours: 2

Effective pain and anxiety control are essential components of the management of dental patients. This elective course will present 30 hours of didactic instruction required for a State of New York restricted certificate to administer local infiltration anesthesia and nitrous oxide/oxygen analgesia sedation during dental hygiene treatment procedures. Topics include a review of dental neuroanatomy, respiratory anatomy and physiology, pharmacology of local anesthetic drugs used in dentistry and nitrous oxide/oxygen sedation, proper administration techniques, patient assessment, legal, risk management, and ethical issues. The clinical requirements for the infiltration anesthesia and nitrous oxide analgesia certificate can be completed in the elective Pain and Anxiety Control Clinic, DH 281. The minimum passing grade is “C-.”

Course Outcomes
Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

describe the anatomy and physiology of the nerves and the psychological and physiological aspects of pain;
define the indications, contraindications, and pharmacology of agents used in inhalation sedation, local anesthesia, and vasoconstrictors, including drug interactions and incompatibilities;
determine the recommended dosages of local anesthesia, vasoconstrictor, and nitrous oxide analgesia;
utilize the health history and evaluation procedures to detect medically compromised patients and discern those conditions that place the patient at risk for local anesthetics, vasoconstrictor, and nitrous oxide/oxygen sedation;
identify the appropriate selection and sequence of preparation of the armamentarium for administering local anesthetic agents and nitrous oxide analgesia and determine the proper record documentation;
apply problem-solving skills to recognize and manage the complications and reactions to local anesthetic agents and nitrous oxide analgesia; and
determine and describe the basic technique steps for safe and effective administration of maxillary and mandibular injections.

Prerequisites: All required fall semester, second year courses in the Dental Hygiene curriculum must be passed.
Corequisites: All required spring semester, second year courses in the Dental Hygiene curriculum.
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