Laser applications
Laser treatment may serve as an adjunct or alternative to conventional, mechanical periodontal therapy. Furthermore. low-level lasers may have biostimulatory effects that are reported to result in better wound healing compared to traditional approaches and in periodontal tissue regeneration. Recently, laser therapy has been introduced for the treatment of peri-implant disease with promising results.
‘LASER’ is an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. The physical principle of laser was developed from Einstein’s theories in the early 1900s, and have been used in many different areas in Periodontology and Implantology. Because of the photo-physical characteristics of lasers, laser irradiation exhibits strong ablation, hemostasis, detoxification and bactericidal effects on the human body.
Laser applications for periodontal and implant therapy have gradually expanded as a result of the increase in published basic and clinical investigations using diode, carbon dioxide (CO2), neodymium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet (Nd:YAG), erbium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet (Er:YAG) and erbium, chromium-doped: yttrium, scandium, gallium, garnet (Er,Cr: YSGG) lasers.
Evidence has shown the benefits of the use of lasers in decreasing infammation, via altering or eliminating the periodontal biofilm in periodontal pockets.. Thus, in periodontal therapy, laser treatment may serve as an alternative or adjunctive therapy to mechanical approaches to aid in the removal of harmful substances.
Laser Assisted New Attachment Procedure (LANAP) was developed in the 1990s using an Nd:YAG laser as an alternative to conventional periodontal surgery, especially for peri- odontally hopeless teeth. LANAP is a minimally invasive surgical procedure, aiming at periodontal tissue regeneration with a pain-free protocol. The Laser Assisted Peri-Implantitis Procedure (LAPIPTM) protocol for treating peri-implantitis with a minimally invasive surgical approach adapts the LANAP protocol used to treat teeth for the therapy of ailing dental implants. Low-level laser therapy has been proposed as a new treatment approach for the treatment of oral diseases in dentistry. Use of the biostimulatory effect of low-level laser therapy in postoperative therapy has recently been proposed owing to several possible benefits, such as the reduction of discomfort or pain, promotion of wound healing, bone regeneration and the suppression of inflammatory processes.
Laser treatment is an indispensable treatment tool in our clinic and is utilized in many procedures such as:
