Laser in Dentistry - Are you dentists or stormtroopers?!
Some patients are surprised that we use a laser, as they tend to be associated mostly with skin treatments and sci-fi novels. But yes, we do use it for certain cases, and no, it doesn’t make any wacky sounds. When do we use lasers? Read on to find out.
Soft Tissue Re-Contouring
Sometimes a patient may have a gum line that they don’t like, or a specific area of their gums that needs reshaping. In many cases, we use the traditional approach with a scalpel (after administering anaesthetic of course!) However, when the area is very small and requires a lot of precision, lasers can be a great option. Lasers can be easier to handle for small areas, allowing you to control exactly how much you remove on a minuscule scale, leading to fast healing.
Frenectomies
A frenectomy is a minor procedure to remove a ‘frenulum’, or a thin membrane of tissue that limits movement in the mouth. The most common frenectomies we do are where the lip is attached to the gum. For patients who experience excessive bleeding, it can be useful to use a laser as it essentially cauterises the area, reducing bleeding to a bare minimum.
Dental Implant Treatment
Sometimes, if there is time pressure because a patient is going overseas, or lives far away, we opt to use laser treatment as part of the dental implant process. At the stage where we need to trim or cut the tissue so that everything fits, we can use the laser to speed the healing process, so that impressions can be taken immediately.
Lasers are just one of many amazing inventions that we use in dentistry. We hope you learnt something, and if you like, you can check out our blog on other technologies that we use here at Noble.