Laser Dentistry at Harmony Dental
Laser Dentistry provides a minimally invasive option when you’re facing gum surgery, cavity treatment, and other oral issues.
Laser Dentistry provides a minimally invasive option when you’re facing gum surgery, cavity treatment, and other oral issues.
This video shows you how laser is used in periodontal disease therapy.
Dentistry has always benefited from technological advances and using lasers to treat patients is the latest innovation available for certain dental procedures. Laser treatments reduce time spent in the dentist’s chair, reduce pain and healing time, and — for some patients — reduce stress by avoiding traditional drills during dental work.
Laser dentistry involves the use of lasers for dental treatments. As opposed to the traditional drills used by dental professionals, lasers offer a quick way to perform dental procedures with less recovery time for the patient.
All lasers work by delivering energy in the form of focused light. When used for dental procedures, the laser acts as a cutting instrument or a vaporizer of tissue with which it comes in contact. When used for teeth whitening, the laser acts as a heat source, enhancing the effect of tooth-bleaching agents.
The two main types of lasers dentists use to treat dental conditions are hard tissue and soft tissue lasers. Each kind of tissue absorbs wavelengths of light differently, so each laser uses a different wavelength that makes it appropriate for cutting into that specific type of tissue.
A hard tissue laser is used primarily for teeth. The wavelength of these lasers cuts through both water and bone, specifically the calcium phosphate in bones and teeth. These lasers can very accurately cut into teeth to facilitate certain dental procedures.
Soft tissue lasers are ideal for cutting into soft tissue and sealing the exposed blood vessels simultaneously. As a result, patients don’t bleed very much during soft tissue procedures, and healing is quicker after treatment. Soft tissue lasers are also great for cosmetic procedures because patients can begin to see results right away.
Laser dentistry offers distinct benefits:
Laser dentistry is an innovation that makes many treatments possible and others more comfortable. These are a few of the ways we use lasers in our dental practice:
Patients can expect their post-operative experience after laser dentistry will likely be smoother than after traditional surgery. Because a laser causes far less bleeding than a scalpel, the site of your surgery will bleed much less when you get home, and wound, healing will occur more quickly.
While you should still follow cleaning and care instructions to the letter, you’re less likely to get an infection. You also won’t typically experience the post-op pain and discomfort associated with scalpel surgery; post-op irritation after laser surgery is likely to be minor.
To mitigate your fears and to provide you with a more comfortable, pain-free experience, discover what our team at Harmony Dental has to offer in Bloomington, MN. For the soft tissue treatments you’ve been putting off due to fear or recovery time, we welcome you to our office for fast, minimally invasive laser dentistry!
Laser dentistry is another innovation to help dentists and patients maintain optimal oral health. Contact us today to learn more about what laser dentistry can do for you.