by Lisa Parker: Technology can help dentists to treat in a more effective and better way…
For the dental practitioner today, it is essential to leverage and harness the power of the latest advances when treating patients. Advanced equipment and new digital tools are making the hi tech dental office of today a better experience for patients, and helping to ensure excellent oral health.
Here are ten cutting-edge technologies you will find in a modern dentist’s office.
1 – VELscope
VELscope is a unique and special kind of equipment used to detect the abnormalities in the mouth and widely used for cancer screening. The handheld device emits a harmless, bright blue light which is used to inspect the mouth and tongue. The device is sensitive to abnormal tissue changes and the distinctive blue-spectrum light causes the soft tissue of the mouth to naturally fluoresce. Healthy tissues fluoresce in distinct patterns that may be visibly disrupted when tissue undergoes an abnormal change such as when associated with dysplasia or oral cancer.
2 – Digital X-rays
Traditional X-rays take a lot of time and do not always provide proper results. It is very important that digital X-rays are faster as compared to traditional methods. The image from the X-ray comes in seconds, which makes the job of the dentist easier. It also helps them in the end to determine the exact medical conditions. As compared to other traditional methods, it makes perfect sense to use the Digital method to find and analyze the graphs quickly and easily. The dentist can easily zoom into the image for better assessment. The tools also help you to further refine and assess the situation in an easier way.
Digital X-rays also can make use of advanced cavity detection technology, many of which use deep learning algorithms to pinpoint decay and other tooth conditions.
3 – HealOzone
This important method is one of the easiest ways to eliminate tooth decay. It is very effective because it contains Ozone that is a natural gas and best way to kill bacteria and fungus. • It is a great tool to detect and get rid of any signs of decay before it progresses to a more advanced stage.
4 – DIAGNOdent
It is a new and state of the art device that dentists use to detect cavities that are hiding in places that regular x-rays can’t find. It can ensure that the mouth that needs to be checked is scanned for any cavities and other signs.
5 – Intraoral Camera
It is a tool that dentists use to gain precise and well-defined pictures of hard to see ‘places’ within a patient’s mouth. The camera also allows the dentists to display the images of the patients while assessing and educating the needs of the patients. The technology allows dentists to conduct a complete checkup of the mouth and assess the patient’s oral care needs.
6 – Dental Practice Management Software
As dental equipment has advanced, the software tools available for dentists have also made dramatic advances. The trend of digitization has encompassed the oral healthcare industry, unfolding a wide set of opportunities. The global dental practice software management market is anticipated to surpass USD 2 billion by 2023. Dentists can now use advanced software to not only help with clinical treatment of patients, but to manage and grow their businesses.
Your dental chart is now a digital tool, part of a dental management software suite.
7 – Whitening Treatment
Many new forms of whitening treatment combined with zoom technology can determine when you must use teeth whitening strips effectively for best results. However, research and development are going on to help dentist feed the right data and see results easily.
8 – Nitrous Oxide and (Intravenous) IV Sedation
Nitrous Oxide sedation also known as laughing gas can actually calm the patient suffering from agonizing tooth pain. Sedation along with NO2 gas ensures to put the patient to sleep and give ample time for the dentist to apply procedures like wisdom teeth extraction. Custom capsules and injections with a mixture of gas and sedation are making dentist job easier due to technology changes.
9 – Communication Tools
With patients already familiar with a wide variety of digital communication tools, the modern dental office has a lot of opportunity to open up the communication channel with current and prospective patients. Patients can book appointments, provide their information through digital forms and use chat and message applications to communicate their clinical needs to dental offices, using the latest technology. Many dental offices also now offer web site portals where patients can schedule treatment, pay their bills and engage with the dental practice.
10 – A Bright Future for Dental Technology
The dental industry is changing and evolving, and technology is pushing this forward. In the future your dental office is less likely to be a single practitioner, but will be a part of a group, managed from a central location. While this may lead to some changes in the personal dealings with a dentist, it promises to bring efficiency into practices and improve patient care overall.
New computer-aided dental procedures can do just that for everything from root canals to implants such as veneers. CAD/CAM dentistry is short for computer-aided design and has rapidly evolved. One huge leap is accuracy and the tiny cameras that enable precise placement of tooth appliances.
On the cutting edge, technologies like stem cell repair and tooth regrowth are currently being developed, to help make event the most severe tooth damage reversible.
Source: 33rd Square