Taking lasers on the road

Dental Medical Technologies (DMT) has hosted a national road show with leading U.S. laser clinician, Dr James Jesse. Dr Jesse, a dentist of 30 years, teaches at the prestigious Loma Linda University and says that he uses the Biolase Waterlase on every patient.

According to DMT, almost 200 people attended the road shows as the current interest in lasers in dentistry continues to increase on the back of several innovative new products in the market sector.

Dr Jesse commenced his evening programme, held at major city hotels, by explaining the benefits of the World Clinical Laser Institute in ongoing research and training in laser dentistry. With over 1000+ members in the USA alone, the Institute, established by Biolase but open to all, stages regular symposiums several times a year in the USA and Europe. Unfortunately, with the war in Iraq and SARS, a planned event in Thailand was cancelled.

The programme demonstrated the differences in using a laser to cut teeth versus the high speed including SEMs at x5000 magnification showing obvious microfractures up to a micron wide and possibly several microns deep following use of the latter. Microfractures, he explained, equal sensitivity.

Dr Jesse said he uses the Waterlase on patients from 18 months to 97years, in both the soft tissue mode and for hard tissue cutting. The advantage of the variable laser energy, he stated, was that the laser will not cut soft tissue when it is in hard tissue mode and vice versa.

Detailed clinical DVD movies of the gamut of restoration types were shown for a number of treatment modalities. Interesting facts included that the laser sterilizes as it goes and it can be used to fix dry sockets. Permanent tooth desensitization could also be easily achieved in about 30 seconds per tooth with a 100% successful rate on 100% of patients.