Forty years ago, utilizing lasers in the dental chair sounded like something straight out of Star Trek. Dr. McCoy is not the only one using lasers anymore. State-of-the-art dental practices use lasers as a staple in their offices. At this point, technology is outpacing the dental consumer in every way. A great many people have never used a dental laser in their lives, yet more and more technological advancements are occurring in the field of laser dentistry. At this point, it is necessary to know the basics. With so many options, let’s try to make heads or tails of it.

Laser ABC’s

"Laser" is an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. What does all this mean? In essence, a laser produces a very exact beam of concentrated laser energy that can perform a wide variety of dental procedures. The laser sterilizes and coagulates blood vessels at the same time, thereby reducing the opportunity for infection. In dentistry, lasers can be used for surgical procedures such as a cutting instrument or tissue vaporizer, meaning it melts away tissue it comes in contact with.

Safety glasses will be used to protect your eyes from any harm. In many cases, the use of the laser instead of the drill or knife greatly reduces pain during the procedure. Depending upon what you need and your pain tolerance, anesthetic is sometimes unnecessary!

Advantages and Disadvantages

Like everything under the sun (or moon or stars or clouds), laser dentistry has its own pros and cons. One major pro is that patients may now avoid hearing the dreadful sound of the drill in some cases, as lasers can now perform the traditional drill’s responsibilities.

Besides that, lasers score points with patients and dentists in other ways, too.

- Use of lasers then reduces the need for local anesthesia. This is because lasers may cause less pain in some instances, so that anesthesia is no longer a requirement.

- With lasers, minimized bleeding and controlled swelling during soft tissue treatments are a possibility. This is good news, but because it gives people less excuse to be absent for school or work, it may be bad for some.

- The tooth’s ability to heal where deep cavities have existed is enhanced by lasers. Though you won’t heal as quickly as a mutant or a superhero, your tooth may heal a bit faster than the average healing time – at least for humans.

- Post-operative discomfort is also minimized by the use of lasers.

- Waiting time to finish a filling is reduced as lasers are used as curing for the filling.

So what are the drawbacks from the use of lasers?

- It can’t be used for many common procedures. Lasers are unable to adequately remove silver fillings, onlays and crowns or to fill cavities between teeth, around old fillings and large cavities.

- Some cases may still require drills to shape a filling even when lasers are already used. Even with the use of lasers, a drill may be needed, at least in some circumstances.

- Use of lasers may not allow a patient to bid anesthesia goodbye completely, because some cases still require anesthesia to eliminate pain during the procedure. This just means pain is not entirely absent when a laser is used.

You and your dentist will decide which laser is right for you. Here is a quick look at some of the amazing treatments that can be afforded by using a laser for your next procedure. This is NOT an exhaustive list; your own dentist can fill in the blanks.

- Cavity removal
- Crown lengthening
- Root canals
- Cold sore treatment
- Replacing stitches (sutures)
- Detection of cavity micro-fractures
- Gum surgery
- Smile reshaping
- Cutting and draining abscesses
- Light activation of bleaching material
- Composite curing

Today, we don’t have “to boldly go where no man has gone before” to simplify our dental procedures. Lasers aid in healing, reduce infection and generally make your time in the chair well-spent. Ask your dentist about lasers before you begin your next treatment plan.

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