Dental Wonders: 5 Dental Instruments that your Dentists Use
Taking care of your teeth sometimes needs more than your personal touch. To keep your tooth and gums sparkly clean and healthy, you’ll need the help of a Dentist. Some Dentists may or may not be doctors, but these professionals are more than qualified to handle health issues regarding the status and health of your teeth.
Dentists earn their degree and have all the right to give recommendations and perform procedures on your teeth and gums. Not only that, dentists have specialized tools that are built exclusively for them. In fact, there are some tools that you might not think that dentists use on their routine operations. Here are some high-tech gadgets that dentists use to perform their tasks.
Dental Loupes
Ever notice why a lot of dentists wear glasses? Do dentists have eye problems? The answer to that is no. Dentists usually wear specialized eyewear called Dental Loupes during procedures. These loupes can magnify the smallest details inside your mouth.
Working on someone’s teeth can be a tedious process because it takes doctors a long time to finish a procedure. Dental loupes make the process easier by reducing the time and effort a dentist puts in to properly see the inside of your mouth. These loupes work by relying on light refracted through lenses.
Most dental loupes have foot switches that enable dentists to continually work on your teeth without having to stop and use their hands to zoom in or out. Some even have small lights attached to them to improve the visibility inside the patient’s mouth.
Dental Drills
Ever heard of that weird, creepy sound you hear when you visit the dentist? That sound probably comes from a dental drill. Dental drills are small hand-held drills which allow the dentist to prepare a tooth for procedures such as attaching crowns, dental extractions, and other dental procedures.
Fun Fact: These drills are 100% safe and designed for dental procedures. However, a lot of patients may find it comforting that the dental drill may soon be a thing of the past. Recently, dentists are considering the use of peptides that can do the work of a drill, minus the irritation and creepy sound.
Peptides are amino acids which can act as a regenerating substance for your tooth. Using peptides means that there’ll be no use for a drill in the future. Just let a dentist apply the peptide on your tooth and wait for it to help your body stimulate tooth formation.
Dental Suction
The mouth dries up when opened for an extended period. To prevent drying, it’s the body’s typical response to pump up saliva production. Undergoing a dental procedure requires a patient to open their mouth which is why dentists need a suction machine to drain the saliva inside the mouth.
Water Flosser
Another hand-held device used by a dentist, a water flosser shoots out a powerful jet of water that can push away sticky stuff that’s just clinging on your teeth. The pressure of the water is strong enough to blast away gunk while delicate enough not to damage your gums and other sensitive parts of your mouth.
Although most dentists use a water flosser, you can use a water flosser in your home when regular flossing is difficult or isn’t applicable. Water flossers such as Waterpik WP-660 Aquarius are good tools approved by the ADA or the American Dental Association. You can find other reliable water flossers online. (Source: https://www.authoritydental.org/best-water-flosser)
Ultrasonic Scalers
These devices are used by dentists to remove calculus and other plaque on teeth. Calcium deposits or calculus are tough to remove. The tip of an ultrasonic scaler can vibrate and destroy calculus buildup in your mouth. Most of these tips are hollow or have a small hole beneath the tip that can shoot out a jet of water to further clear out any plaque left behind.
Takeaway
Most of the time, people rely on themselves to keep their teeth clean and healthy. However, there are times that they need help from a professional, namely a Dentist. Dentists are professionals who are qualified to do procedures on your teeth.
Although Dentists undergo a lot of studying and training, they need specific tools to help them become effective. To do their job effectively, Dentists rely on devices such as Ultrasonic Scalers, Water flossers, Dental Loupes, etc. A good dentist knows how to use these tools to the fullest which in turn allow a less-terrifying experience for most patients.
EDITORS NOTE: This column is republished with permission. The featured photo by Daniel Frank on Unsplash.
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