How are people sedated during the removal of wisdom teeth?

Various ways: Some persons may have local anesthesia which basically means numbing the area where the teeth are, some persons may have premedication prior to their appointment for relaxation and then also have local anesthesia and possibly nitrous oxide gas. In my practice most people choose to have intravenous sedation(you are put to sleep)they are not aware of anything and when they wake up the teeth are gone.

With oral or IV meds: Some patients do very well with oral sedation, that is, taking a pill like Ativan (lorazepam) the night prior to surgery and then an hour before the procedure. The patient is not "knocked out", but is in sort of a "zombie-like" state. This takes the edge off for many, and there is an amnesia effect, as well. Others prefer to be asleep during the surgery. Iv drugs like versed and Valium are used in such cases.

Options: Sedation techniques offered by some dentists and/or oral surgeons may include oral sedation, nitrous oxide or laughing gas, intravenous conscious sedation, general anesthesia, or a combination of the above. Local anesthesia is still administered with all of the sedation options.