Femtosecond laser for ultra-precise dentistry

Dentistry is subject to an increasing demand driven by population health, gum diseases, aesthetics and longer life expectancy. The COVID-19 crisis has highlighted the need for low-contact and tele-dentistry due to the inherently close contact between patient and dentist during conventional treatments. Limited human precision and lack of real-time assistive diagnostics often leads to more tooth removal that may be strictly necessary. Patients suffer high costs, long waiting periods and avoid proper care for fear of needles, drills and pain. While automation and robotic assistance are widely adopted in other medical fields, their application in dentistry remains limited.

The Ultrashort pulse (USP) laser system developed by the Laser Physics team at the Research School of Physics, the Australian National University, with appropriate digital controls, allows pain free laser tooth cutting and is able to deliver the next technological advance in dentistry. Femtosecond lasers can drill through all types of materials such as enamel, dentine, ceramics and silver fillings. Ultrashort femtosecond lasers offer irrigation-free and anaesthetic-free dentistry and a level of precision unmatched by current dental ablation devices.

Ultrashort pulses laser processing of enamel: (a) – Optical image, size of the cavities 1x1 mm²; (b) – scanning electron microscope image of one the cavities, (c) – X-ray image of the processed tooth showing thermo-couple measurement of temperature in the nerve canal during the laser processing.

USP generates no thermal effects, thus operate without water irrigation, allowing a clear visible field and lower cross infection hazards. The process is also largely anaesthetic free and providing minimally invasive and precise laser tooth cutting. Removing the fear of needles, drills and pain, and combined with the use of device's real time assistive diagnostics it will prevent unnecessary tooth removal.

Hands-free laser dentistry promises a revolutionary solution with particular benefit in improving dental health for rural, remote and disadvantaged Australian communities with reduced access to health care. Offering unprecedented precision and selectivity, dentists will perform anaesthetic free treatments in the clinic or remotely, revitalising dentistry and attitudes toward oral health.

And speaking about getting the teeth treated in a remote area, how about going as far as 384400 km?

Future Moon to Mars mission is anticipated to take at least three years, and it is highly likely that crew members will need to undergo dental procedures while in flight. The use of open dental handpiece that rotates 300,000 times per minute would be prohibitive in space due to distribution of dislodged tooth structure and cooling water throughout the cabin. This is where USP laser dentistry may come really handy.

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