Sedation in dentistry: current sedation practice in Italy

Aim: To report information about the current sedation practice in Italy. Methods: National survey to collect data about current sedation practice in Italy. Results: There are in Italy 33 Dental Schools, 18.921 dentists and 34.625 physicians working as dentists. Sedation is taught in most of the Dental Schools, and some Universities also have postgraduate education programs on sedation. Sedation in Italy is provided by anaesthesiologists (94%) and dentists (6%). Italian guidelines for sedation in dentistry were published by the Italian Association of Dental Anaesthesia (AINOS). Conclusions: Sedation teachers in Italy are anaesthesiologists, but conscious sedation is not their preferred topic. This teaching is mainly theoretical, while practical training is lacking in the majority of the Dental Schools. Sedation for paediatric and/or disabled patients is rarely carried out, because these patients are mainly treated with general anaesthesia. In the academic setting anaesthesiologists perform most of the dental sedations. Sedation techniques depend on the knowledge of the teachers, skill of clinical staff and available resources of the Institution. There are no standards for sedation in dentistry produced by public Authorities but AINOS has published guidelines covering many aspects of sedation in dentistry.