Update on the new sedation guidelines

In 2000, the report A Conscious Decision: A Review of the Use of General Anaesthesia and Conscious Sedation in Primary Dental Care, was published by the Department of Health, which saw the cessation of general anaesthetic in primary care. Further guidelines for sedation by general dental practitioners followed. These guidelines have all sought to provide advice and set standards for conscious sedation for dental practitioners.

In 2010, the Intercollegiate Advisory Committee for Sedation in Dentistry (IACSD) was formed, with the aim of updating the guidelines of 2003 and 2007. The committee was represented by a wide range of professionals including all four Dental Faculties of the Royal Colleges, the Royal College of Anaesthetists, the Faculty of General Dental Practice, the defence organisations and the Specialist Advisory Committee for Special Care Dentistry.