Lasers in Dentistry: Minimally Invasive Instruments for the Modern Practice
Course Number: 394
Course Contents
Photobiomodulation
All four laser types discussed here have photobiomodulation properties in addition to their surgical capabilities. The terms Low Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) or biostimulation are often used to describe this phenomenon.
In dentistry photobiomodulation can be used for many things including:
Treatment of recurrent aphthous stomatitis and traumatic ulcers.
Reduction of oral edema.
Post-operative analgesia following periodontic, oral surgery, and endodontic procedures.
Treatment of recurrent intraoral and labial herpes.
Management of inflammatory conditions such as erosive lichen planus.
Reduce pain of orthodontics.
Management of temporomandibular disorder.
Figure 47. Laser treatment of Aphthous Ulcers.
Recurrent aphthous stomatitis treated with combination therapy of Nd:YAG and Er:YAG biostimulation. The patient feels immediate pain relief and the lesion usually remains comfortable. This particular patient’s aphthous ulcers usually last ten to fourteen days yet with laser treatment the ulcer heals in a matter of days.
Figure 48. Oral Diagnosis – Herpes Treatment.
This patient suffered from recurrent palatal herpes type I outbreaks two or three times a year. The lesion had just started when treated with dual wavelength photobiomodulation therapy with an Nd:YAG and Er:YAG laser. Her relief was immediate and at two day follow up the lesion had already re-epithelialized fifty percent.
33 year-old patient presented with a complaint of chronic mouth ulcers for a year. She had undergone thorough medical and rheumatology evaluations prior to her visit with no underlying medical conditions identified. The bottom images are after three Nd:YAG photobiomodulation treatments combined with a Medrol Dose-Pak. A biopsy indicate non-specific ulceration which is consistent with a clinical diagnosis of Major Aphthous Stomatitis.