More Uses Of Lasers In Dentistry

Minor Surgical Procedures

Another major advantage of lasers apart from being noiseless and vibration-free is that they allow a bloodless field of surgery. The heat produced by lasers helps seal the blood vessels as they are being cut, thereby controlling bleeding automatically.

Some patients assume that lasers will lead to less pain than traditional methods of surgery, although evidence has found that this may be anecdotal at best. Certain studies have found however that the healing which takes place after a procedure performed with lasers is quicker and with less complications than other methods. This again is disputed and recent evidence suggests that while an increased rate of healing may be seen in some cases, there is no guarantee that using lasers will always accelerate the rate of healing.

Depigmentation procedures, which involve removing only the topmost thin layer of gingival tissue without exposing any of the underlying bone can be quite technically demanding when performed in the traditional manner. The use of lasers to perform the same procedure has meant that it can be performed by almost anyone without much trouble.

The lack of tactile sensation and depth of penetration variability, however, means that the fine granular control present with scalpels is not quite present and so their use is still limited in larger, more invasive surgeries.

Tooth Whitening

A number of tooth whitening products exist which use lasers to activate the hydrogen peroxide containing "whitening gel". This causes the gel to release oxygen molecules as well as dehydrate the enamel layer causing it to become lighter in shade.

Conclusion

The use of lasers in dentistry has been around for a long time now, upwards of 30 years in fact, so why is it that not every dentist is utilizing lasers in their daily practice? There are several reasons for why such a transformation in dental practices has not taken place including a prohibitively high cost, lack of sufficient training and an aversion to change.

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The main reason, however, is that while the applicability of lasers in dentistry is unquestionable, they have not proven to be demonstrably superior to traditional methods being use. There is not even a single procedure which can only be performed with a laser or would be much better performed with a laser or even much easier to perform.

Until such advancements can be made to make lasers integral to dental procedures, their use will always remain limited to niche procedures.