Dentist... Laser vs Ordinary?

@Greg Sacramento you said that "During my last visit to the dentist where I had an implant placed, I had little drilling. Most of the time a laser was used. I ended up with Somatic tinnitus and hyperacusis."

Do you blame the laser or the drill for this issue? I know that we worry about the ultrasonic polish so I wonder if the laser is also troublesome?

 

Yeah I'd also like to know this. I find it really hard to believe that a single visit could be the cause of one's T. Even before I had T I visited the dentist regularly but as far as I remember the noise way annoying but I never really considered it as loud at the time, although of course my standards have changed since then.

 

Believe it.

I got permanent T (14khz) almost two years ago immediately after going to the dentist for my first crown. He spent about 20-30 minutes of what seemed like non stop drilling.

Prior to that, I only had an occasional ringing in my ears (and at a much much much lower frequency) like everyone else has after experiencing something loud.

 

My T was caused by a sonic toothbrush coming into contact with the opening of my ear canal for a fraction of a second (perhaps a quarter of a second) two years ago. So I find it easy to believe that a single visit can cause T.

 

Bill:
I was going to private message you because my question is related to one of your posts from awhile ago.

I wanted to ask - do you wear Peltor ear muffs when you go to the dentist?

And, is your recommendation to go to a dentist that uses both a laser and an electronic powered drill for dental work (like replacing an old filling with a crown)? As opposed to a dentist that only has a drill?

Trying to make sure I was following the information you provided.

Thanks!

 

Laser dentistry is quite limited here in the US. I would rather look for a dentist with quieter equipment. The electric drills are lower volume compared to the pneumatic ones that are more common.

 

When I had a dentist use a laser on one of my cavities, I found that wearing Peltor ear muffs felt good. I wasn't bothered by the occlusion effect. When the dentist used a drill, I found that not wearing anything (e.g., Peltor, ear plugs) was the best for me.

Yes, most definitely! A laser is pretty loud, but it is much more bearable than a drill. Choose a dentist who uses electric-powered (as opposed to an air-powered) drill. Also ask the dentist to use the lowest RPM setting possible. The lower the setting, the quieter the noise, but also the harder it is to drill (so drilling takes longer). Offer to pay for the extra time. Also, some Tinnitus Association used to recommend that dentists drill for at most 5 seconds followed by a 10 second break. This recommendation is no longer on their website, but you can read about it on this forum. In any case, this triples the drilling time...

 

Thanks for your reply!

 

It's still really loud though.

Laser dentistry is difficult to find in Canada, too. You pretty much need to go to one of the larger metropolitan cities to get it. Also, note, there are laser machines for both soft and hard tissue. You want to find a clinic that has laser for hard tissue (for filling cavities etc.).

 

There are plenty of lasers for gum tissue here, but the alternate is scalpel, so not noisy at all. Lasers for a cavity I have not seen anyone around here doing that.

 

@Bill Bauer Hi Bill, I’m new to this site. I’m looking for a new dentist and I’m from Vancouver BC Canada. I would like to get in touch with you in hopes in finding a dentist that will help me with my teeth. I’m scared of dentist

Kind regards,

Marie