The Ramshaw and Silver Relative Analgesia (RA) Clinic is intended to help anxious patients, primarily children, have dental treatment done. It is a method of relaxing an anxious child enough to enable us to perform dental treatment for them. It works by administering Nitrous Oxide and Oxygen (gas and air or laughing gas) to the patient via a mask over their nose. This is in place for the whole treatment and will be removed when the treatment is complete. The patient is never asleep at any stage and this makes RA a very safe procedure. The child is fully recovered within 5 minutes of removal of the RA but should be kept at home and supervised for the rest of the day.

While RA will be successful for a lot of patients, if their fear of dentistry is too great it may not help and the patient will need to be referred to a hospital environment. However RA is the first step in treating these patients and will always be attempted before a General Anaesthetic.

As a matter of routine a consultation is required to assess fitness for sedation. A £20 returnable deposit is required which will be refunded at the end of treatment so long as the appointments are kept, if you fail to attend for any RA appointments you will lose your deposit. It will include introducing your child to the "laughing Gas" without any treatment. This increases their confidence immensely and will go a long way to making their future treatment enjoyable and successful.

Pre and Post-operative RA Instructions.

1. It will be necessary to give your dentist a full medical history for the patient at your check up visit. You will need to have a full list of currnet medication with you. If your medical history changes between check up and RA appointment you must inform the dentist.
2. Always take your medication as normal unless otherwise instructed by your dentist.
3. Have a light snack at least one hour before your appointment.
4. Children must be accompanied by an adult - pregnant women are not suitable escorts for children - and supervised at home for the rest of the day.
5. It is advisable for adults who wish to have RA to have an escort with them although this is not essential
6. Patients must be able to breathe through their nose for RA to be successful.
7. Patients with blocked noses cannot be treated on the day of their appointment.
8. In the case of an emergency or to answer any questions please contact the practice on 0191 5672604.