Outpatient anesthesia in oral and maxillofacial surgery.

An integral part of the specialty of oral and maxillofacial surgery is intra-operative anxiety and pain control with the use of inhalation and intravenous agents. The safety of these agents when used by trained practitioners and staff in properly equipped facilities is well-documented. The purpose of this article is to review the most common sedative agents currently used in the oral and maxillofacial surgery outpatient setting.