Laser Dentistry: Treatment, Procedure, Cost and Side Effects

Laser dentistry is an effective way to perform many procedures on the teeth. Laser dentistry can be used to perform dental procedures more effectively, provided the dentist can control the power output and can also monitor the duration for which the tissues are exposed to the laser. This allows the treatment of a specified area without causing damage to the surrounding tissues. Laser dentistry is still not a wide-spread treatment and very few dentists are actually competent enough to perform this treatment. Laser dentistry provides precision treatment that entails minimum pain and also requires lesser recovery time.

Laser dentistry has a number of applications. It can help to treat canker sore and cold sore pain, gum disease, root canal infections, reduce or remove inflammation of the gums, gum reshaping, expose wisdom teeth, removing throat tissue that causes sleep apnea, regenerate damaged nerves and also removes benign oral tumors.

There are two types of lasers that are used in dentistry: hard tissue lasers and soft tissue lasers. The hard tissue procedures include cavity detector, dental fillings or tooth preparation and tooth sensitivity. The soft tissue procedures include crown lengthening, gummy smile, muscle attachment and soft tissue folds. Some other applications of laser dentistry are viewing tooth and gum tissues, nerve regeneration, treatment of sleep apnea, teeth whitening and temporomandibular joint treatment.

The hard tissue procedures include cavity detection, dental fillings or treatment of tooth sensitivity. For early cavity detection, low intensity soft tissue dental lasers can be used. This is done by providing a reading of the by-products produced by tooth decay. Lasers, when used in dental filling procedures, can kill bacteria located in a cavity and this helps in improved long term restorations of the teeth. Anesthetic injections and turbine dental drills are not required when hard tissue dental lasers are used. Dental lasers also help to treat hot and cold tooth sensitivity by sealing the tubules located at the root of the tooth.

The soft tissue procedures include crown strengthening. In this treatment, gum tissues and bone are reshaped with the help of dental lasers. This process furnishes a better foundation for placing restorations. Dental lasers help to reshape the tissues of the gum and provide a person healthy tooth structure. This improves the appearance of his/her gummy smile. Babies who are unable to breast feed due to limited tongue movement and children who are tongue tied can undertake a laser frenectomy. When soft tissue folds are formed due to ill-fitting dentures, dental lasers may help to remove the soft tissues in a painless and suture-free manner.

People, who want to treat pain from canker sore or cold sore, root canal infections or gum disease, are eligible for treatment. A person also becomes eligible if he/she wants to reshape his/her gum, to remove throat tissues that causes sleep apnea, to regenerate damaged nerves and also if the person wants to undergo some other dental procedures. There are some important benefits of laser dentistry that makes it a better choice in comparison to traditional dental procedures.

Use of laser in dental procedures is expensive. People who cannot afford to spend that much amount of money are not eligible. People who have fillings already in place in their teeth are also not eligible. Similarly, a person is not eligible if he/she wants to use the lasers in some common dental procedures like filling of cavities between the teeth or around large cavities that are to be prepared for a crown.

Laser dentistry tends to be much more expensive than traditional dental treatments. Laser dentistry may still require the use of anesthesia. A person who has undergone this treatment may experience some of the side-effects of using anesthesia. If lasers are used in some commonly performed dental procedures, complications may arise and a person may experience unnecessary dental problems.

A person will experience lesser complications after undergoing laser dentistry in comparison to any dental surgery without laser. Laser causes very less bleeding and so a person will not have to deal with bleeding from the site of the treatment. A person will not have to deal with an open and bleeding wound after undergoing treatment with laser. However, a person should pay heed to a doctor’s advice and follow the cleaning and caring instructions carefully. A person should discontinue brushing and flossing the treated area for a period of 2 weeks.

After undergoing treatment with laser, a person may feel his/her teeth has become sore and tender. These symptoms generally start about 2 weeks after the treatment. The swelling of the gums will require a person to be on liquid diet for a period of three days. The swelling of the tissues and the associated pain generally subside after a period of 14 days. Typically, patients undergoing dental laser surgery experience less pain and also require lesser time to recover in comparison to patients who get treated with the help of traditional methods.

Laser dentistry can be done to deal with a host of tooth problems. The average price of laser dentistry procedures in India can vary between Rs 1000 and Rs 30000.

Laser dentistry can be used to improve the health and functioning of the teeth and gums and it can also be done to accentuate a person’s appearance. Intensive procedures like surgery and biopsy can be also performed with the help of lasers. The results are long-lasting as long as the person adheres to the doctor’s advice and takes care of his/her teeth. On the other hand, bad lifestyle and some other factors may cause the person to experience teeth problems again.

Tooth sensitivity can be avoided by using desensitizing toothpaste, by using a brush with soft bristles and by avoiding highly acidic foods. A dental crown lengthening procedure can be done to lengthen dental crowns in which excess gum and bone tissue is reshaped to expose the natural tooth. A simple surgical procedure called frenulotomy can be used to treat posterior tongue tie.