Phoenix Business Journal, Friday, December 12, 1997 at 20:45
The Business Journal
Dr. James Webb said he is the first dentist in Arizona to use a
new laser system that removes tooth decay - all without drills and
anesthesia.
Webb paid $39,900 for his laser system, which emits infrared
radiation that is absorbed by water in the tooth. He purchased the
system in May, a month before he opened his Scottsdale practice.
He charges $40 more per tooth to help cover the cost of his new
laser system, but nobody is complaining.
After all, most patients don't need anesthesia because there is no
pain from the procedure, and the dreaded drills are gone.
Kathleen Hanna of Scottsdale said she didn't need any anesthesia,
and didn't feel any pain when her three cavities were dissolved with
laser.
"It went fairly quickly," she said. "I was out in an hour with
three cavities. I could eat right afterwards - you don't have that
numbness where you can't talk. I just walked out like nothing had
happened."
In May, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted Premier
Laser Systems Inc. of Irvine, Calif., the first-ever clearance to
market the Centauri Erbium: YAG Laser Dental System.
Laser techniques for treating soft tissue, such as gums, have been
used since 1991, but this is the first system that removes cavities
and prepares teeth for new fillings.
Webb, who said he was the 17th dentist in the country to be
trained by Premier to operate the YAG system, said he has treated
nearly 70 patients with the new system. The 31-year-old dentist
moved to Scottsdale from Alaska.
"Fifty percent of American people don't go to the dentist because
of the fear of pain and the anesthesia injection as well," Webb said.
"With laser, this will open up dentistry to the population that
otherwise would not go to the dentist because of fear."
But what about the fear of the dentist slipping or missing with
that laser in his hand?
"It doesn't," Webb said. "It's not like a Buck Rogers laser."
He said it's a contact laser, which means the dentist has to have
the tip of the hand piece in contact with the tooth before it will
actually cut the tooth.
"There's not a problem with accidentally shooting through your
head and out your ear," he said. "You can't cut a hole in the wall
with it, unless you touch the wall."
Webb said he has been interested in lasers since he was in high
school.
"This is the future of dentistry," he said. "It's where we all
have to go."
The American Dental Association and other local dentists aren't so
sure.
"Although the association views this development as promising,
neither the company nor the FDA has provided the association with
the laboratory and clinical studies on which this decision was
based," according to an ADA statement. "Therefore, the association
cannot attest to the safety and effectiveness of this laser
application at this time."
Some of the ADA's concerns include safety to the teeth because of
the rapid temperature rise at the site where the laser strikes the
tooth. It is concerned that teeth may crack caused by shock waves
that move through the tooth following exposure.
It also raised concerns with the performance of the laser system
compared with the high-speed hand piece.
The ADA is reviewing the studies demonstrating the safety and
effectiveness of lasers and hopes to issue a statement next month.
The Arizona Dental Association pointed out that the laser is
approved only for adults, not children. It also is concerned with
the higher cost of the laser, which could increase the cost to
patients.
Dr. Roger Briggs, a dentist who was one of the first to use an air
abrasion system in 1990, said he has been using lasers in his office
since 1990.
All except for the Erbium YAG.
"I'm a big proponent of these wonderful high-tech things that come
along," Briggs said.
"My experience has been that air abrasion removes tooth structure
probably faster and with the same degree of comfort or discomfort,"
he said. "If you would go have decay removed with a YAG laser, if
you're very apprehensive, you would want to have anesthetic for that
just as you would for the drill or for air abrasion."
Dr. Allan Johnson, a Phoenix dentist, said he is taking a
wait-and-see attitude about the new laser system.
"When the American Dental Association comes out and approves it,
I'll be a little bit happier about jumping in there," he said. |
