Effects of the Er,cr:ysgg Laser on Bone Bed Preparation with Various Laser Tips

The past decade has seen a veritable explosion of research into the clinical applications of lasers in dentistry. Although lasers were once regarded as complex technology of limited use in clinical dentistry, dentists have becoming increasingly aware of the usefulness of lasers in the armamentarium of the modern dental practice, where they can be used as an adjunct or alternative to traditional approaches. Traditionally, lasers have been classified according to the physical construction of the laser (e.g., gas, liquid, solid state, or semiconductor diode), the type of medium that undergoes lasing (e.g., Erbium: Yttrium, Aluminum Garnet (Er:YAG), Erbium: Yttrium, Scandium, Gallum, Garnet (Er:YSGG), Erbium, Chromium: Yttrium, Scandium, Gallum, Garnet (Er,Cr:YSGG), and the degree of hazard to the skin or eyes following inadvertent exposure. Currently available systems represent a high state of technical refinement with regard to performance. Recently developed, the Er,Cr:YSGG laser uses a combination of laser energy, water, and air to ablate enamel, dentin, bone, and soft tissues. The wavelength (2780 nm) of the Er,Cr:YSGG laser has an affinity for water and is well absorbed by water and hydroxyapatite, two of the major inorganic components of bone and dental hard tissues. Accordingly, this wavelength is playing an increasingly important role in oral maxillofacial surgery. For most patients, drills and hand pieces are inconvenient components in oral surgery, making laser osteotomy an attractive alternative. The preparation of the osteotomy site demands a technique in which the local temperature does not exceed 47°C. Eyrich compared the super-pulsed CO2 laser and Er-YAG laser and the conventional drill with regard to their respective thermal effects on human bone, and found that lasers caused an even lower temperature rise than conventional drilling for osteotomies on larger bone segments compared to small bone slices. Moreover, the laser showed acceptable efficacy, with drilling times EFFECTS OF THE ER,CR:YSGG LASER ON BONE BED PREPARATION WITH VARIOUS LASER TIPS