Laser Dentistry

A dental laser is a concentrated beam of light that can cut and seal soft tissue at the same time. In practice that means gum work with less bleeding, fewer stitches, and a more comfortable few days of healing than the same procedure done with a scalpel.

It helps, but only for gum work. The laser at The Tooth Corner is a soft-tissue laser, used on the gums, and is not used to drill teeth, fill cavities or do root canals. Below is where it helps and where it does not.

What the laser is used for here

• Gum disease, alongside deep cleaning: after the tartar is removed from the root surfaces, the laser is used inside the gum pockets to reduce bacteria and support healing.
• Reshaping the gum line: trimming gum that covers too much of a tooth, evening out an uneven gum line, or exposing more tooth before a crown or veneer so it fits and looks right.
• Small gum corrections: removing overgrown gum around a tooth or a crown, where a blade would mean bleeding and stitches.

In most cases it is one step in a bigger treatment.

Gum disease: what the laser adds and what it does not

Bleeding gums, bad breath that does not go away and teeth that feel slightly loose are usually signs of gum disease. The cause is hardened tartar and bacteria sitting on the root surface, under the gum where a toothbrush cannot reach.

The treatment that works is deep cleaning: removing that tartar from the roots, section by section, under local anaesthetic. The laser is useful after that. It reduces the bacteria left inside the pocket and supports healing, often with less tenderness in the days after.

It cannot replace the cleaning. If tartar is left on the root, the gum will not heal, whatever else is done to the pocket.

Gum treatment at the clinic is handled by Dr. Prerna Agale, our consultant periodontist (gum specialist). Our guide on bleeding gums: causes and treatment explains the stages of gum disease and what each one needs.

Dr. Prerna Agale, consultant periodontist, who handles gum treatment at the clinic.

Reshaping the gum line

Sometimes the problem is not disease but shape. Gums that cover too much of the front teeth make teeth look short. An uneven gum line makes one tooth look longer than its neighbour. And before a crown or veneer, a small amount of gum sometimes has to be moved so the edge of the new tooth sits correctly.

The laser suits this well. It trims and seals in one step, so there is little bleeding and usually no stitches. For a full smile makeover, this is often done before the veneers or crowns are made. See smile makeover and veneers and caps for how it fits into that plan.

Gum reshaping only changes the gum. If teeth look short because they are worn down, or the upper jaw shows a lot of gum because of how it has grown, the laser alone will not fix it, and we will tell you what will.

What a laser cannot do

Some clinics advertise laser fillings and laser root canals. Here is how those are actually done at The Tooth Corner.

• Fillings and cavities: decay is removed with conventional instruments here. The quality of a filling depends on removing all the decay and sealing the tooth properly, not on the tool used to do it.
• Root canals: at The Tooth Corner, root canals are done by Dr. Shabnam, an MDS Endodontist, under a dental operating microscope. What decides whether a root canal lasts is finding and cleaning every canal, which the microscope is for. See microscopic root canal treatment.
• Gum disease: the laser supports deep cleaning, it does not replace it.

When you do not need it

Not every gum procedure benefits from a laser, and adding it where it does not help only adds cost. A routine scaling for healthy gums with some tartar does not need it. Our guide to teeth cleaning and scaling myths covers what a normal cleaning involves.

The laser is suggested when it makes a procedure easier to heal from, or makes a small correction possible without stitches. If it will not change anything for your case, we will tell you.

What it costs

The cost depends on the procedure the laser is part of: how many areas of gum are being treated, whether it is a single correction or part of gum disease treatment, and how many sittings it needs. You get the full plan with the cost in writing before anything starts.

Booking in Bellandur

The clinic is in Green Glen Layout, Bellandur, below Ratnadeep Super Market, open every day from 10 AM to 9 PM, Sundays included. If your gums bleed when you brush, or you have been told you need gum treatment elsewhere and want a second opinion, message us on WhatsApp and we will book you an examination first.