IV Sedation Dentistry

Patient Review of IV Sedation with Dr. Calcaterra

A Google review from Kyle – a real patient of ours. Notice how he received IV sedation elsewhere – but then ended up coming to our office.

Are you difficult to get numb? Do you dread the needle? Do you have a bad gag reflex? Are you petrified of getting a root canal or tooth extraction done? Does just hearing the word “dentist” make you queasy?

Then you’ve come to the right place. Sedation dentistry is the solution.

But there’s more.

Do you want to be sedated by Connecticut’s premier sedation dentist? The dentist who receives IV sedation referrals from other dentists all over New England and New York? Did you call another office that advertised sedation – but then learned they just give you pills or have to call an outside anesthesiologist?

Then you’ve come to the right place (again).

Dr. Nicholas Calcaterra is one of Connecticut’s most experienced sedation dentists, having helped thousands of patients overcome their fears and get the dental treatment they need. He routinely does more than one hundred sedations per year, has a valid license to perform IV sedation, and is the only active general dentist in the entire state with Master Status in the American Dental Society of Anesthesiology (ADSA).

In sedation dentistry, Dr. Calcaterra administers medications that will bring you into a twilight state where you can get nearly any dental procedure done without any pain. And when you emerge, you won’t remember anything.

Does that sound too good to be true? Well it is true – just watch video testimonials of our patients – LizJen, Jesse, Adriana, Deanna, Jermaine, Leslie, Helen, or Jennifer!

What is Sedation Dentistry Like in our Office?

Watch our video – to learn what makes us the premier Sedation Dentistry office in all of Connecticut – and to hear from several of our patients talk firsthand about their experiences.

Noticed how the video started? Our patient Leslie said “I don’t remember a thing.” That’s how she described her sedation experience!

Who Benefits from IV Moderate Sedation?

Dentist who puts you to sleep for dental treatment in Connecticut photo

She stayed away from the dentist for over 10 years due to fear. Now, after IV sedation with Dr. Calcaterra, she’s all smiles!

As an office that has treated thousands of fearful patients, we’ve seen nearly every kind of dental phobia. In fact, we wrote an entire post about it. Here are some of the more common reasons why patients desire sedation:

  • You are too uncomfortable or scared to even call the dentist, let alone come for an exam.
  • You hate the tastes, smells, and sounds of the dentist.
  • You had traumatic experiences as a child and now are too scared.
  • You need multiple procedures performed and want to get them completed in much fewer visits.
  • You have a bad gag response.
  • You’ve had difficulty getting numb in the past at the dentist.
  • You hate needles and shots.
  • You are fine in the chair for simple fillings, but you need oral surgery performed (such as having wisdom teeth or other teeth extracted) or a root canal and you are scared.
  • You are unable to find a dentist whom you can trust.

There are many other reasons why you may need or want sedation. These are just the most commonly seen ones.

Why Dr. Calcaterra for Sedation?

Simple. We do sedations ALL the time.

Review of IV sedation from a real patien

Jess routinely drives more than one hour to have IV sedation administered by Dr. Calcaterra.

It is worth stating it again. We do sedations ALL the time. For us, sedating patients is a routine procedure, just like doing a filling or crown. This is why we have patients travelling from all over New England and New York state to be treated by us.

Many dentists claim to do sedation dentistry but do not do it on a routine basis. In nearly all of those cases, the dentists DO NOT possess the license to do so. They do not do over 100 cases per year like we do.

Many offices advertise “sedation” but then simply give you pills. This is called oral sedation – which is unpredictable at best – and potentially dangerous at worst. You can learn more about IV vs. oral sedation in this article.

Other offices advertise “sedation” to get you through the door. But then at your appointment, you learn that the sedation is administered by an outside practitioner who you do not meet until the day of your procedure!

Patients overwhelmingly choose Dr. Calcaterra for IV sedation for the following reasons:

  • Experience. Dr. Calcaterra is the only general dentist in the entire State of Connecticut who has achieved Master Status in the College of Sedation in Dentistry through the American Dental Society of Anesthesiology. This achievement – which is the highest any general dentist can attain in dental anesthesiology – along with routinely performing 100+ sedation cases per year – makes him the most accomplished sedation dentist in the entire state.
  • Education. He graduated number 1 in his class from dental school and completed advanced training in anesthesia at Saint Francis Hospital in Hartford and at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
  • Licensure. Dr. Calcaterra is one of only a select few general dentists with a license from the state of Connecticut to administer IV Sedation. Unfortunately, many of the dentists in Connecticut advertising and performing sedation DO NOT have the license to do so. Visit this page to see a list of licensed sedation dentists in CT as well as this page to learn how to check if your dentist has the proper license for sedation.
  • Procedures. Dr. Calcaterra has experience in all phases of dentistry – extractions, crowns, root canals, cleanings, etc. allowing him to perform almost any dental procedure under IV sedation. Many other providers who administer IV sedation only perform a small number of procedures.
Dental IV sedation license for Connecticut

Dr. Calcaterra’s CT Sedation License

There are obviously many other reasons – reasons beyond what are listed above – why so many patients have chose our office for their dental needs. Over 1000 satisfied IV Sedation patients cannot be wrong. But, simply put, our extensive experience and personalized touch is what sets us apart.

Now, while we can’t help you overcome a fear of spiders or flying in an airplane, we can help you overcome your dental fears and get you smiling again. Our goal is to be Connecticut’s best sedation dental office.

Our Sedation Resources

Want to learn more? Here are some of the resources we’ve put together for you to learn more and see why our office is considered Connecticut’s premier sedation office.

  1. IV Sedation Review by J. Link

    Another review from an IV sedation patient.

    View video testimonials of our own patients – LizJen, Jesse, Adriana, Deanna, Jermaine, Leslie, Helen, or Jennifer – who were sedated in our office and talk about their experiences.

  2. Which is better – oral or IV sedation? We answer the question in great detail.
  3. Want to see a list of all the licensed sedation dentists in Connecticut! Hint: if they’re not on this list, they don’t have a license, and you don’t want to call them.
  4. How much does sedation dentistry cost? We answer this and whether insurance will cover it on this page.
  5. Learn about the medications – primarily midazolam and fentanyl – that we use in our IV cases.
  6. Learn about how we use IV sedation for two of the most commonly feared dental procedure: tooth extractions and root canals.
  7. Scared of the IV? See how we can make the IV start painless in this awesome video.
  8. Want to learn how the process works? We have a detailed guide of how we do it in our office.
  9. We review all the types of sedation and anesthesia used in dental offices.
  10. Read about the most common reasons we’ve seen for why patients desire sedation for dental procedures.
  11. Learn about the rigorous requirements to earn a license to administer IV twilight anesthesia in Connecticut and how to see if your dentist has one. Or learn what kind of dentist can put you to sleep – so you can determine if you’re in good hands.
  12. Are you allergic to local anesthetics? Did you experience an adverse reaction to a “-caine” anesthetic? Dr. Nick is one of the few dentists in the entire U.S. treating “novocaine allergic” patients with Benadryl as a local anesthetic combined with IV sedation. Learn more about this here.

Nicholas Calcaterra - one of Connecticut's most experienced sedation dentistsInterested in learning more? We are considered by many to be the premier Connecticut. Sedation Dentistry office. Do you want to be sedated by someone who does several cases per week, not 1 or 2 per year? Did you call another office only to learn that they don’t have a license to administer sedation?  Call us at (203) 799 – 2929 or visit this page to request an appointment.