Laser Dentistry

LASER DENTISTRY

Laser dentistry is the use of lasers to treat a number of different dental conditions. It potentially offers a more comfortable treatment option for a number of dental procedures involving hard or soft tissue compared to drills and other non-laser tools.

LASER stands for Light Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation. The instrument creates light energy in a very narrow and focused beam. This laser light produces a reaction when it hits tissue, allowing it to remove or shape the tissue. Lasers can make dental treatments more efficient, cost-effective, and comfortable for the patient.

LASER DENTISTRY VS GENERAL DENTISTRY

Is Laser Dentistry Better?

Laser dentistry provides patients with a better experience and quality. Even though laser dentistry is mainly associated with cosmetic treatments, it is equally effective for preventative purposes. It potentially offers a more comfortable treatment option for a number of dental procedures involving hard or soft tissues compared to drills and other non-laser tools.

What Are The Different Advantages Of Laser Dentistry Over Traditional Dental Treatments?

Pain: When it comes to pain,regular dentistry procedures tend to cause discomfort as compared to lasers. Regular Dental instruments cause vibrations, which may be painful to some patients. To remove discomfort and ease the pain, anaesthesia injections are used.
On the other hand, laser dentistry is pain-free. It is fast and effective as it uses light and heat to perform a wide range of dental treatments.
Dental Bleeding: Your oral health is pretty important. So, when you opt to have a dental treatment, it might cause bleeding during treatments and discomfort..
But if you opt for laser dentistry, there is no Dental Bleeding since the laser promotes immediate blood clotting by sealing blood vessels. Swelling is also negligible when using lasers.
Recovery: When it comes to recovery, it may take time to heal, making the tissue regeneration slower. For instance, if you want to remove one of your wisdom teeth, your gums are cut open to extract the tooth. This, in all probability, will leave you with a wound that will need time to heal.
In laser dentistry, tissue can regenerate faster, and minor wounds heal more quickly.
Bacterial Infections: Dental problems are mostly due to underlying bacterial infections of the teeth and Gums. Most common problems like Gum bleeding or pain in tooth are because of Bacterial infections of Gums causing Gingivitis and Infection of the pulp of a tooth due to Dental Caries.
With a regular dental treatment, to resolve these chronic infections takes time and multiple appointments and dressings and redressings. The Benefit of using a Laser for such procedures is that Laser sterilises the infected area with Heat and hence more accurately removes the Bacterial infections and hence gives better postoperative results.

HOW IS LASER USED IN DENTISTRY?

All lasers work by delivering energy in the form of light. When used for dental procedures, the laser acts as a cutting instrument or a vaporiser of the tissue that it comes in contact with. When used in teeth-whitening procedures, the laser acts as a heat source and enhances the effect of tooth-bleaching agents.

Instead of needles and drills, laser dentistry uses Heatand light to treat Dental infections. That’s why the procedure is less painful.

CLASSIFICATION OF LASER IN DENTISTRY

The word LASER is an abbreviation for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of radiation.

The concept of lasers is based on Einstein’s theory of stimulated emission. Lasers are used in a wide range of medical and cosmetic procedures. Recently it has received attention in clinical dental settings. With minimal anaesthesia, lasers ablate the hard tissues.

Bacterial counts in root canals are also reduced with the help of laser treatment. There are different ways by which lasers are used in dentistry. During surgical procedures of soft tissues, good hemostasis can also be achieved with their use. The most common types are carbon dioxide (CO2), diode, neodymium: yttrium– aluminum–garnet (Nd: YAG), and erbium: yttrium–aluminum–garnet (Er: YAG) lasers. They are used for cavity preparation, tooth whitening, gingival incisions, and other applications.

Classification Of Laser In Dentistry According To Tissue

Lasers are categorised by various methods, however broadly, they are classified into two categories – hard or soft tissue lasers. This is because some are too abrasive for soft tissue while others aren’t abrasive enough for hard tissue. Some can be used interchangeably if their wavelength allows it.

Hard Tissue Lasers in Dentistry

The essential use of this laser is to cut the teeth with exact precision. It cuts into the teeth and bones with accuracy. This laser treatment is perfect during the cutting of the tooth structure.
The wavelength from the intricate tissue laser is highly absorbable by hydroxyapatite. Besides, the lasers include Erbium Chromium YSGG and Erbium YAG.

Hard tissue laser also helps in preparing or shaping the teeth with composite bonding. It helps in the removal of small tooth structures and the healing of dental tear fillings.

Some common hard tissue procedures include:

Cavity detection
Dental fillings and tooth preparations
Treating tooth sensitivity

Dental Soft Tissue Laser Procedures

Soft tissue lasers can highly absorb water and haemoglobin, making them suitable to treat problems in the soft tissue. Likewise, the soft tissue lasers include Neodymium YAG with diode lasers. It helps in killing the bacteria in the mouth and helps reactivate the growth of the tissues.

Some common soft tissue procedures include:

Treating gummy smiles
Crown lengthening
Treating tongue frenulum attachment
Removal of soft tissue folds

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