Latest Dental Advances Patients Actually Like
OK, Even though I am a dentist, I will admit that going to the dentist is not a favorite thing for many patients to do. This is in large part due to the fact that 20 and even 10 years ago dentistry was a painful experience. It ended with having to spit into what looked like a miniature toilet bowl. A dental appointment, like all forms of medicine, has changed so much for the better to make a patient’s dental experience much more enjoyable. I could make a long list of improvements to make the dentist job easier such as electric drills that reduce corporal tunnel, microscopes to see better, and improved dentists chair to prevent back strain. But that would not be that interesting to our patients. Instead, let me talk about improvements that directly make our patients have a better dental experience.
Everything has a great flavor now. Topical anesthetic, fluoride, impression material, bleaching gels, etc are all wonderfully flavored. Anytime we get a new product in my office the first thing I do is taste it myself. While my team prefers the cherry, I think the strawberry cheese cake fluoride is the best.
Digital Photography and digital x-rays can help patients actually see what the dentist is talking about. When I had eye surgery 7 years ago my doctor used a computer to map out the slope of my eyes. I was very scared. He then showed me the computer simulation of what was wrong and how he would correct it. It made all the difference to me because I could see just what he was talking about. Dentist can now do the same thing for their patients using digital photos of their teeth. When I examine my patient’s teeth, I do it by looking at digital photos on a flat screen monitor that my patients can see. This way they know exactly what I am talking about when I show them a crack or cavity and they can show me precisely what they do not like about their smile.
Laser Cavity Detectors. Remember when your dentist examined your teeth by poking them with a pointed instrument? And you waited anxiously to see if it stuck in your teeth letting the dentist know you had a cavity. Now we examine your teeth painlessly by shining a harmless laser on your teeth and it beeps when a cavity is detected. This laser is totally painless, totally safe, and extremely accurate at finding cavities too small for the dentist to see with his eyes. No more waiting to see if the pointed instrument sticks in a painful cavity.
Ultrasonic and laser gum cleaners. I have two patients that actually like my hygienist to “scrape” their teeth to remove the plaque and tarter when they have their teeth cleaned. All my other patients either don’t mind it or down right hate it. Instead of “scraping” teeth now we use an ultrasonic scalar that removes the tarter from their roots with a sound wave and water. It is so much more comfortable than scraping with a metal instrument and actually does a better job in half the time.
Bleaching gels. Bleaching gels for both at-home and in-office bleaching are much better. The techniques for making the trays are made more comfortable than in the past. The bleaching gels now come in a wide variety of flavors to make them taste really great and they now come in a wide range of strengths with desensitizers in the gels. All this means is that the trays are more comfortable with a better taste and that you bleach for a shorter length of time with much less, if any sensitivity. Everyone can now have beautifully white teeth just by bleaching their teeth on their way to work each morning.
Tooth colored fillings. That’s right; your fillings do not have to be black. Fillings now come in colors that can match anyone’s teeth. If you hate when you talk or laugh and everyone can see black fillings in your white teeth, then these can now be changed to match your teeth so no one can see them.
CAD/CAM crowns, veneers, and fillings. These are crowns, veneers, and fillings that are milled out of porcelain in the dentist’s office so you only need one appointment for them. You don’t have to have a temporary, wait for weeks for the crown/veneer to come back from the lab, or miss work for a second appointment to cement the crown/veneer. The crowns are all porcelain so they look fantastic without the black line at the gum line that is so unattractive.