Dental Laser Drilling Experiences?

[Jack Straw]

Hello Everyone,

I am a long time lurker, but have dealt with tinnitus my whole life.

I have browsed this forum quite extensively about this topic and only really found one other forum poster discussing this. @Bill Bauer has made a thread on this topic and I was hoping I could get him and maybe a couple of others to share their experiences with have a laser drill used for dental work. I am going to post some questions below that I am looking to be answered, but I encourage everyone to go beyond these if you have other important information to add.

• How loud was the overall sound in the room from the laser?
• Could you wear ear plugs during it or would it cause an occlusion effect like with a regular drill?
• Did the water spraying against your teeth from the drill sound similar to an ultrasonic cleaner that dentists also use?
• Did your dentist have to use the regular drill at all to shape any fillings?
• How was the overall experience? Did it have any effect on your tinnitus or hyperacusis?
• Is there anything else I should know or be aware of?

Regards,

Jack

 

[Jack Straw]

If you're voting, please give a quick response so we know why you're choosing one over the other!

 

[Bill Bauer]

• How loud was the overall sound in the room from the laser?

It was loud, but bearably so. I couldn't imagine it doing any damage.

• Could you wear ear plugs during it or would it cause an occlusion effect like with a regular drill?

I wore Peltor X5A muffs. I didn't notice much of an occlusion effect.

• Did the water spraying against your teeth from the drill sound similar to an ultrasonic cleaner that dentists also use?

I had never had an ultrasonic cleaner used on me. Since a number of people got their T as a result of an ultrasonic cleaner, and since it is possible to have your teeth cleaned using manual tools (just ask your hygienist), I hope you will never take that risk ever again.

• Did your dentist have to use the regular drill at all to shape any fillings?

Unfortunately, every laser procedure has got to include the use of the regular drill to shape the filling. It is noisy and all around bad. But since the total drilling time is around 30-60 seconds, it ought to be possible to find a reasonable dentist who would be ok to drill for at most 5 seconds and take 10 second breaks. [Keep in mind that there are surprisingly many Unreasonable people out there.] Try to find a dentist who uses the newer electric-powered (not the air-powered) drill.

• How was the overall experience? Did it have any effect on your T or H?

It was a positive experience. To my surprise, I still ended up getting a minor spike, but it didn't take long for it to be gone.

• Is there anything else I should know or be aware of?

Laser can be used when the cavity is new. It is a good idea to see your dentist often and ask the dentist to take a look at your teeth to spot cavities when they are new. This way a laser can be used to take care of the cavity, and a laser is a lot less traumatic compared to a regular drill. [Unfortunately, some cavities (e.g., the ones located on the tooth surface facing the other tooth =>between the teeth) can't be repaired using a laser (at least according to my dentist).]

I had already answered most of these questions in an earlier thread. I am not sure whether you had seen it: https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/dentist-laser-vs-ordinary.2791/#post-272983

 

[Jack Straw]

• How loud was the overall sound in the room from the laser?

It was loud, but bearably so. I couldn't imagine it doing any damage.

• Could you wear ear plugs during it or would it cause an occlusion effect like with a regular drill?

I wore Peltor X5A muffs. I didn't notice much of an occlusion effect.

• Did the water spraying against your teeth from the drill sound similar to an ultrasonic cleaner that dentists also use?

I had never had an ultrasonic cleaner used on me. Since a number of people got their T as a result of an ultrasonic cleaner, and since it is possible to have your teeth cleaned using manual tools (just ask your hygienist), I hope you will never take that risk ever again.

• Did your dentist have to use the regular drill at all to shape any fillings?

Unfortunately, every laser procedure has got to include the use of the regular drill to shape the filling. It is noisy and all around bad. But since the total drilling time is around 30-60 seconds, it ought to be possible to find a reasonable dentist who would be ok to drill for at most 5 seconds and take 10 second breaks. [Keep in mind that there are surprisingly many Unreasonable people out there.] Try to find a dentist who uses the newer electric-powered (not the air-powered) drill.

• How was the overall experience? Did it have any effect on your T or H?

It was a positive experience. To my surprise, I still ended up getting a minor spike, but it didn't take long for it to be gone.

• Is there anything else I should know or be aware of?

Laser can be used when the cavity is new. It is a good idea to see your dentist often and ask the dentist to take a look at your teeth to spot cavities when they are new. This way a laser can be used to take care of the cavity, and a laser is a lot less traumatic compared to a regular drill. [Unfortunately, some cavities (e.g., the ones located on the tooth surface facing the other tooth =>between the teeth) can't be repaired using a laser (at least according to my dentist).]

I had already answered most of these questions in an earlier thread. I am not sure whether you had seen it: https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/dentist-laser-vs-ordinary.2791/#post-272983

Thanks for the response Bill I appreciate the response. As a long time lurker on here I usually look for your voice of reason in threads.

Lucky for me the dentist I will be seeing is a family member so I don't think it will be hard for me to ask for them to take it slow when drilling to shape it. I plan on bringing ear muffs as I seem to get better ear protection from them than ear plugs. Also it will be easier to remove when time to drill.

I assume the water that comes out of the drill that hits your teeth didn't cause much sound because it didn't seem to be problem for you.

In case anyone else read this thread and has questions about the ultrasonic cleaner that dentists use, please do not have it used. It is very loud because it conducts sound through your teeth and is unnessecary. I asked my family member dentist about it and he said that it is used to speed up the cleaning process and he feels that manuals tools give a better clean anyway even though they take more time.

I am very suprised more people on the forum don't have experience with the laser drill seeing how dangerous the manual drill is.

Again, thanks a lot for the reply Bill it has helped relax me regarding this. I will also be sure to take my regular Zinc and Magnesium supplement beforehand and potentially some NAC.

 

[JohnJohnJohn]

@Jack Straw Did you ever use a laser dentist in the end? Could you report back?

Thanks,

John

 

[Jack Straw]

What I thought was a cavity actually wasn't. But I will report back if I do need it to be used.

 

[JohnJohnJohn]

That's great @Jack Straw, thanks!