UAE: Children’s clinic treats 3-year-old with painful tooth decays under laughing gas

UAE: Children’s clinic treats 3-year-old with painful tooth decays under laughing gas

Medical centre offers nitrous oxide as alternative for kids who have to go under general anaesthetic for pediatric dentistry

By WAM Published: Fri 12 Aug 2022, 2:06 PM Last updated: Fri 12 Aug 2022, 2:51 PM

The Dental Clinic at Al Mushrif Children's Specialty Centre, part of the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (SEHA), has successfully treated multiple teeth decays in a three-year-old child under nitrous oxide.

Several dental clinics had informed Sultan Omar Kithiri's parents that he would need general anaesthesia to ensure he remained cooperative during the procedure, an option that most parents are concerned about.

Typical pediatric anaesthesia comes with a certain degree of complications. Nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, is a faint, sweet-smelling gas, which is absorbed rapidly, facilitating faster onset and recovery (two to three minutes). The gas has a superior safety profile, when used in recommended concentrations and causes minimal impairment of any vital reflexes.

It is a great alternative for anxious children or even cooperative ones facing a lengthy procedure. Most children are enthusiastic about the administration of nitrous oxide, often reporting a warm and tingling sensation as it takes effect.

Elaborating further, Dr Dema Zatara, Pediatric Dentist at Al Mushrif Children's Specialty Centre, said, "Naturally, most