Sleep Dentistry: Putting Patients’ Fears to Rest

Dr. Kent Mueller is helping his patients enjoy their dental visits and restoring smiles in the process.
By Dava Guerin

Aside from public speaking, visiting the dentist is the number one fear among people in the United States. It is estimated that more than 50 percent of Americans experience some type of dental trepidation, which can range from mild anxiety to an outright phobia. As a result, they avoid going to the dentist all together, and that not only affects their oral health, but many other aspects of their lives as well.

For Dr. Kent Mueller, that’s just the patient he wants to see in his thriving Willow Grove, Pennsylvania practice. “I often say that the ‘train wrecks’ are my most rewarding patients. When they finally come in to the office they have neglected their oral health for years, and are also terrified about visiting the dentist,” Mueller said. “There is nothing more rewarding for me than creating a comprehensive treatment plan for each patient, and by introducing them to sleep dentistry, which literally transforms their lives.”

Mueller explained that people, who experience dental fears and phobias, tend to avoid going to the dentist at all costs. According to the online site—dentalfearcentral.org., the most common  causes of dental phobia are: bad experiences with dentists; a history of  abuse; an uncaring dentist; humiliating remarks by a dentist or hygienist; vicarious negative experiences among family and friends; and post-traumatic stress. In addition, dental phobias can have wide-range consequences on a person’s life, and may eventually lead to clinical anxiety and depression. Mueller and his team of caring and dedicated dental professionals, create a warm and friendly environment for their patients, who literally come to the practice from all across the country.

Their expertise in sleep dentistry gives their patients the opportunity to relax when they are undergoing diverse dental and surgical procedures, and overcome their fears for the long-haul.
But how does it work? Sleep dentistry has been used by dentists for a number of years, and has evolved as practitioners employed new sedation techniques. For Mueller, whose experience includes a post-graduate hospital general practice residency, as well as graduate studies in anatomical pathology, giving his patients a positive experience with superior results is his number one mission. “Whether we are restoring teeth by using dental implants or cosmetic veneers, the patient is in a light sleep, and doesn’t remember being worked on at all,” he said. “While they are maintained in this state of twilight sleep, they are carefully monitored by an anesthesiologist and a nurse/anesthetist, and when they wake up they are thrilled to see the results, and typically are relieved of their prior fears.”

Sleep dentistry is the “perfect choice,” according to Mueller, for people who not only have fears or phobias, but also those who have hectic schedules or may not be able to commit to completing a treatment plan in a conventional way. “We really get to know our patients and each and every treatment plan is geared to meet their dental needs, as well as their lifestyles,” Mueller said. “Patients have many other reasons for wanting sleep dentistry, and these can include everything from an accentuated gag reflex, bad reactions to anesthetics like Novocain, physical or mental disabilities and even more severe disorders like agoraphobia. “Advances in sleep dentistry are just some of the innovative services we offer in our practice,” Mueller added, “and we always are striving to learn and employ the most sophisticated dental procedures to give our patients the most comprehensive results.”

A  SMILE SAYS IT ALL
It is said that “the eyes are the windows of the soul,” but for Mueller, the smile is the door to the heart and mind.” Often times, patients who have dental fears or phobias or for other reasons don’t visit the dentist until their problems become critical, are some of Mueller’s best candidates. After years of neglect, they can develop periodontal disease, which is an infection involving the bone and gum tissues around each tooth, as well as a host of other problems. “Many of the more complex cases I treat include periodontal disease, as well as anatomic periodontal problems that require surgery. But regardless of the malady, people ultimately feel insecure about their smiles, and live with unnecessary pain and even humiliation as a result,” Mueller said.

Some of the best ways people can restore their smiles and overall dental health is by placing and restoring implants as part of the overall treatment regimen. Dental implants can be used to replace one or more individual teeth to complete the restoration of a partially complete dental arch. They can also be used for people who have lost all of their teeth, or to support and stabilize a removable denture. In addition to implants, Mueller will provide complete dental makeovers for patients who may want porcelain veneers to correct a wide range of dental problems.

Regardless of the dental solution, Mueller is happiest when his patients see their new smiles for the first time. “I have to say that it is a real gift to be able to help people regain their confidence because they look and feel better,” he added. “There is nothing in this world more rewarding to me than the health and happiness of my patients. I’d rather be doing this than anything.”

Dava Guerin is Bucks & Montgomery Living Magazine’s People Editor and lives in Washington Crossing, PA.