The ability to treat a wide range of tissues with a laser has been a fact of life for a long time. What is new are the potential applications (new indications) and the refinement of techniques. The favorable absorption in water and hydroxyl apatite, and the interaction of water and laser light that substantially enhance the laser s effectiveness make the Er,Cr:YSGG laser (wavelength 2,780 nm, frequency 20 Hz, pulse length 140 µ, average output 6 W) an ideal tool for the gentle treatment of soft tissue and bone.
Due to improved operating technique, finer surgical instruments, modified implant surfaces, oral implantations are safe and have become standard therapy. Early complications that were feared in the initial phase of oral implantology have become rare thanks to sophisticated operating techniques and improved implant surfaces.
Periodontitis is characterised by the presence of inflammatory processes in the oral cavity, which can sometimes attack the whole periodontium. Inflammation itself of the periodontium manifest in increased probing depth or bleeding diathesis on light irritation of the gum. If left untreated, periodontitis can lead to bone resorption, which can be documented by X-ray, or even to the loss of the tooth. The primary cause of periodontitis is bacterial tooth deposits (microbial plaque).1, 2 Marker bacteria, eg, Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans (A.a.), Porphyromonas gingivalis (P.g.) and Prevotella intermedia (P.i.) are among the highly pathogenic bacterial spectrum of these deposits...
Based on their market launch in 1995 within the scope of the IDS in Cologne, the diode lasers in dentistry experienced a development, which is to be described as more than turbulentÓ; with the result that today diode lasers are the most represented laser technology in dental offices and are used with great success primarily for soft tissue cuts and peri-implantitis and periodontitis therapy.
Diode lasers were introduced to dentistry in the middle of the nineties of the past century and have proven their worth there particularly during their application in periodontics and implant dentistry. After the first diode or injection lasers were operated exclusively in CW mode (continuous wave), in the beginning of the new millennium they were supplemented with high-power and digital pulse technology equipment. The high-power pulsed diode lasers (up to 20,000 Hz) were developed under the premise of improved cutting performance because the pure CW mode lasers, in this case, were clearly inferior in other wavelengths.
he laser application in dental surgery has become a standard tool for many dental clinics around the world. The instrumentation became less costly and more advanced. The use of a diode laser demonstrates many advantages compared to the scalpel, but as in life one has to deal with some disadvantages also. One of the main hurdles has been the price and the teaching about laser applications in dentistry...
The aim of this clinical study is to compare the desensitizing effects on dentin and tooth neck of Dentin protector (Ivoclar Vivadent, Ellwangen, Germany), Duraphat (Colgate, Hamburg, Germany) and Er:YAG laser(KEY III, KaVo, Biberach, Germany). In private dental offices the dentin hypersensitivity since years is a common cause of discomfort in patients...
A report from Nordic Dental Laser Society and the Third International Symposium in Lasers in DentistryÓ, Hotel Hilton, Slussen Stockholm, November 22Ñ23, 2008.