Lasers are focused beams of light that can be used to remove or alter small sections of tissue. Dentists can use lasers in many different preventative dental care procedures to create a healthier environment in your mouth and give you a confident, bright smile.
What Dental Problems Can Laser Treatments Solve?
Canker Sores and Cold Sores
Laser treatments are a minimally invasive and painless way to treat and remove unwanted blisters and bumps in your mouth. Cold sores and fever blisters pop up for a variety of reasons, including stress, viral infections, and overburdened immune systems. And when they do pop up, they can be a huge inconvenience. They hurt, make eating difficult, and if they’re visible they can detract from your confidence pretty significantly.
Worst of all, they can take weeks to fully heal! While they last, cold sores are also highly contagious, which can make life with your family more difficult. No kisses goodbye before work and school, and making sure no one drinks after you — it can be a pain.
Home remedies for cold sores provide pain relief, but they don’t speed up healing time. Ask the dental professionals at Arkansas Family Dental how you can quickly and discreetly deal with your fever blister outbreak. We’re happy to walk you through the laser treatment process and help you get rid of unwanted sores.
Gum Disease and Inflammation
Periodontal (gum) disease is the infection of the tissues and/or bones that hold your teeth in place. Periodontal disease can be caused by genetics, chronic illness, smoking, poor dental hygiene habits, and certain medications. Typically, gum disease is treated with scaling and root planing (SRP), a preventative dental care method that involves cleaning both the surface and roots of the teeth.
Laser treatment for periodontal disease is a regenerative procedure that preserves your gum tissue and encourages the regrowth of bone. A trained dentist uses the laser to access the infected area and kill any bacteria or infected gum tissue.
When the infected tissue is gone, the root of your tooth is exposed and cleaned with an ultrasonic root cleaner. Then, the laser creates a seal of tissues against the tooth root by warming the stem cell that contains blood.
With laser treatments, no gum tissue is lowered, leaving your body more to work with as it heals. Laser treatments also stimulate new growth, promoting the formation of collagen, connective tissue, and bone. This can help restore your smile and strengthen your teeth.
Gum Inflammation and Bleeding
May patients who suffer from gingivitis can also experience severe gum bleeding. If it’s left untreated, the bacteria and gingivitis pockets can even lead to bone loss. That’s why it’s critical you treat gingivitis as soon as you catch it. Lasers go beyond traditional scraping techniques; they don’t just remove bacteria, they kill it completely.
Once the bacteria is gone, you should see a significant reduction in bleeding and swelling in your gums. If you catch it soon enough, laser treatments for gingivitis may even eliminate the need for gum surgery.
Professional Laser Teeth Whitening
A bright smile can be a key element to a successful social life, and those pearly whites can give your confidence a major boost. Unfortunately, 74% of Americans feel a little shy about the color of their teeth and end up hiding this important aspect of social life.
Perfecta Rev Whitening
When it comes to whitening, your dentist is your best resource. Only dental professionals have access to the professional-strength whitening of Perfecta Rev whitening. Perfecta Rev whitening is a clinically safe procedure used to whiten teeth enamel. Perfecta Rev is only available at a dentist’s office to ensure optimum safety, and comes in different treatment types and strengths to fit your lifestyle and sensitivity.
The Benefits of Dental Laser Treatments
Faster Recovery Times
Since lasers work through heat and regenerative stimulation, there is much less trauma to the soft tissues of your mouth than with traditional treatments. This greatly reduces healing time, meaning the overall treatment process is faster and patients recover more quickly. The less damage done to your mouth, the less there is for your body to heal.
It’s also much less likely that you will need sutures with laser treatments, and you lose less blood—both of which speed up recovery time when compared to traditional treatments.
Reduce the Risk of Infection
Lasers eliminate the need to use multiple dental tools during your procedure. This means a lower likelihood of bacterial infection. Lasers also sterilize each area they are applied to, further lowering the risk of introducing bacteria to the open wound in your mouth.
How Does It Work?
The exact procedure you undergo will depend on your diagnosis. But generally speaking, laser procedures are performed by using a soft tissue dental laser to heat the infected area of your mouth and kill any virus or bacteria inside. Whether we’re treating a canker sore in the mouth or a cold sore on our lip, the most you’ll feel is a little warmth on your skin.
The laser removes the sore and kills the infection, which drastically speeds up the healing process. The laser treatment also temporarily numbs the nerves near your cold sore or infected area, which provides instant pain relief. If you catch them early enough, laser treatment can nip infections in the bud before they progress.
Treatment for cold sores and canker sores take about 15 minutes. You should see significant improvement and healing within 24 hours of treatment.
Procedure and recovery times for periodontal procedures will vary depending on the type and severity of your condition. If you have any questions about your recovery time or how long a procedure will take, ask your dentist. They will be happy to walk you through the process step by step and ensure that you are completely comfortable.
Get a Brighter, More Confident Smile!
Struggling with loving your smile? Whether your teeth are a little crooked, a little less than white, in need of a fluoride treatment, or you struggle with receding gums or recurring fever blisters, Arkansas Family Dental can help with all your preventative dental care needs! We are a holistic Little Rock family dentist focused on delivering beautiful smiles through total-health solutions. Contact us today to learn how we can help you build a healthier, happier smile!
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