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I had a very difficult restorative situation today. The patient had extensive root decay below a PFM and completely subgingival. In the past this would have been a bloody mess. Today I used my diode laser and it allowed me to treat the patient in a much more effective manner than I would have in the past. With the laser I reduced the gingival crest then created a trough that allowed me access to the decayed root. There was no bleeding and it took no more than a minute.

I first started using a diode laser in 1999 (last century). As I expanded my use of the diode laser I was amazed by the fact that patients never complained of post operative discomfort. Most of the time they said they felt nothing the next day. Occasionally they said their gum felt like it was scratched. The other amazing result was that the tissue healed exactly where I cut it. Contouring gingiva with a laser is like sculpting a model, there was no swelling or shrinkage during healing. As a result I could contour the gingiva, prep the tooth and impress at one appointment.