Strong Gag Reflex? Get Help from a Caring Dentist Using iTero®
A sensitive gag reflex doesn’t mean you should avoid caring for your teeth. Find a caring dentist that offers iTero® intraoral digital scans.
Feeling a little apprehensive about going to a dental appointment can be normal. However, some patients can get downright uncomfortable when in the dentist’s chair—even if it’s just for a simple check-up or cleaning. Patients who have a sensitive gag reflex, for example, might dodge the dentist because they want to avoid getting prodded, holding X-rays in their mouth, or having to take gooey molds that can induce the reflex. Instead of avoiding such a crucial part of maintaining your overall health, you might try finding a dental office that helps you feel comfortable during treatments.
What triggers the gag reflex?
The gag reflex is a normal bodily reaction to things touching certain areas in the mouth, like the roof, the back of the tongue, the tonsils, the uvula, and generally anywhere near the throat. For some patients, however, this can be triggered more easily than others. Certain situations can even create anxiety or extreme discomfort for some, which can sometimes lead to avoiding necessary dental appointments altogether. We’ve heard from plenty of patients who said the nausea or discomfort they experienced while in the office lasted for hours after the appointment, which was more than enough to keep them away for a while.
Thankfully, there are ways around this. Dr. Gary Alhadef wants all of his patients to feel comfortable throughout their visit, while helping them maintain their oral health with procedures that accommodate their needs. That’s why Dallas Cosmetic Dental offers the iTero® Element Scanner as an alternative to traditional treatments. We also makes sure that there is a hygienist and an assistant taking basic X-rays, so that the hygienist doesn’t have to walk out of the room to take the picture. This means the camera is in your mouth for only a few seconds, rather than for 30 seconds or even a minute.
How iTero® Can Help
iTero® is a digital scanning system that entirely changes dentistry for both the patients and the professionals. For patients with particularly sensitive gag reflexes, iTero® can eliminate that horrible involuntary reaction that comes from holding anything in your mouth for an extended period of time, such as dental X-rays and slimy molds. Instead, the iTero® system uses a handheld wand to take scans of your mouth. It uses a very small digital camera that scans 20x faster than a normal X-ray, so it only needs to be in your mouth for a few seconds.
Not only can it make the entire process faster and more comfortable, but also the iTero® offers patients:
- More precise dental readings
- 3D scans that allow a more in-depth look at your teeth and gums
- Real-time results
Feel Confident In the Dental Chair
You should never avoid dental appointments or ignore oral health issues because of fear or aversions to having things or your mouth. Instead, find a dentist who cares and one who offers procedures that are tailored to suit patients with your unique needs. At Dallas Cosmetic Dental, Dr. Alhadef offers patients cutting-edge technology like the iTero® Element Scanner to help provide alternative solutions to some notoriously unpleasant dental techniques.