Laser Dental Treatments
Dr. Jason Gray is replacing the drill with laser. "RELAX, this won't hurt a bit."
Dental patients will soon have good reason to believe their dentist's promise, with laser treatment being touted as the way of the future.
At Geelong Smile Studio, a soft tissue laser machine is already turning gummy smiles into toothy grins, with far less blood or pain than traditional methods involving a scalpel.
Dentist Jason Gray said the clinic was also in the process of purchasing a hard tissue laser that could cut through and remove bone.
The state-of-the-art laser would enable major dental work to be performed with a minimum of fuss and pain.
"At the super-duper, cutting edge of dentistry there is even root canal work being done with lasers," Dr. Gray said.
"It's less invasive and it's certainly less painful, but it also heals better and, most importantly, the results are excellent. There are a lot of advantages to laser."
According to practice manager Holly Arkinstall, use of a laser over the traditional drill was just one of the ways in which modern dental clinics were reducing the physical and psychological trauma of dental treatment.
Many patients came to the clinic with bad memories of treatments elsewhere or with a false perception of what their treatment would involve, and how painful it would be, she said.
Dr. Gray said fear of the unknown and fear of pain were two of the main reasons people avoided dental treatment.
If people were confident their time at the dentist would not be distressing or painful, they would be more inclined to seek regular treatment, he said.
Prominent Geelong oral and maxillofacial surgeon, Martin Chin, said lasers were not suitable for all dental treatments and were still too expensive for most dentists.
He added, that in his experience, patients were more worried by the initial needles in their gums than they were by drilling and other treatments.
A specialised "no drill" dental clinic to be established within Sydney University's Westmead Centre for Oral Health next year is expected to set the standard in laser dental care.
According to the university's Associate Professor Wendell Evans, research shows nearly 30 per cent of Australians rarely or never visit the dentist for fear of pain, and specifically the drill.
However, research also showed a significant number of dental problems could be prevented by good dental hygiene, fluoride and regular visits to the dentist.
Dean of the Faculty of Dentistry at Sydney University, Christopher Peck, said the "no drill clinic" was inspired by a need to encourage people to visit the dentist more often and in doing so improve the dental health of Australians.