What comes to mind when you think of the word “dentistry”? I’m sure that your first thought may have included an older, white-haired male with a mask and gloves on with a drill in hand.
In reality, this imagination could not be further from the truth! In the year 2020, lasers aren’t just for hair removal or 20-20 vision. There are several uses for the laser these days, including pain-free dentistry.
If you’ve had a filling before, you may remember the days where a shot of novocaine was standard practice before working on a tooth. In case you’re unaware, the shot itself wasn’t always the worst part.
Sometimes, even with the anesthetic, you could still feel the dental instruments “drilling” a hole in your tooth. Honestly, the after effects of being numb for hours and drooling in public were often what bothered us more than the shot itself.
However, since the invention of the Waterlaser, the process of removing tooth decay has changed drastically! Gone are the days of uncomfortable novocaine shots accompanied by their lingering numbness and drooling!
Why? In 95% of cases, we don’t need anesthetic at all with the use of the Waterlaser. No more numb feeling for hours and no downtime for simple procedures like fillings. In most cases children return to school right after their appointment!
Also, because the Waterlaser is so precise, the dentist doesn’t have to remove nearly as much tooth structure. Wouldn’t it be nice to keep more of your own teeth in your mouth, leaving you less vulnerable to the need for crowns, bridges or dentures later in life?
Should you have a tooth that has deeper decay and requires a root canal, the Waterlaser can clean out the tooth chamber and roots for the dentist. And should you need to remove a tooth all together, the Waterlaser can loosen the gums around your tooth allowing the dentist to remove a tooth with greater ease than in standard dentistry.
Yes, not only does the Waterlaser help with fillings and hard tissues/bone, it also has the ability to assist in soft tissue procedures.
Maybe you’ve heard of someone being “tongue-tied”? In the past this phrase would often be an expression for someone who may trip over their words, but after years of research we now know that tongue-ties and lip-ties can affect your speech and even your eating habits.
A Waterlaser can help with removing the tissue known as the “tie” and can improve your way of life. This procedure can help speech and orthodontic concerns for children and adults, and feeding or nursing concerns for kids and infants.
With soft tissue, the Waterlaser desensitizes and removes soft tissue rather than ‘cutting’ it. Since the laser desensitizes the tissue, there is not a need for local anesthetic or putting a baby to sleep under general anesthesia to complete the procedure. The surgery site is cleaner and can be seen better while operating. Scalpels or sutures are not needed and there is significantly less blood from the surgical site because the Waterlaser coagulates the tissue before removing it.
In addition, did you know that the Waterlaser can also soothe painful ulcerations in the mouth like canker sores, treat soft tissue diseases like gum disease and can even detect cancer in the mouth?
Compared to conventional dentistry, a Waterlaser is many times more convenient and beneficial to us! So step out of the dark ages and enter this new decade with a laser-certified dentist that could help you get the healthy teeth you’ve always wanted.
