Air abrasion Micro dentistry.

In 1995 I learned about Air Abasion Micro Dentistry. I went to a formal course in Texas and was amazed and excited about the technology. You are able to do small fillings without the need of anesthetic and without pain. I was amazed again after being trained of all of its advantages. As the dentist you do not need to have the patient get numb, which a lot of patients like; and you are able to keep the filling so small and conservative. You do not need to remove a lot of tooth structure.

Upon my return to Orlando channel 6 news learned that I was doing this for my patients and had the health reporter come out get a filling done live on the air so everyone could see this. The way this works is that the top surface of the tooth has groves, pits , and fissures. This is where 90% of the cavities start. We use to do sealants to help control getting cavities in these areas but then found out that there is an Organic plug of tissue in the groove that holds water and that is why the sealant fails. When using the air abrasion the organic plug is removed first. We also just don't lock in the filling like with sealants, we bond the filling in and the correct term now is preventive resins. If you look at the filling now from the side is looks like a parfait ice cream. I mean you have the organic plug removed , the fluoride composite place in the bottom then a flowable composite placed over the top that is bonded in place. These last very long. The air abrasion increases the surface tension which means to you it increases the strength of the restoration. We do not do sealants in my practice, we only do the Mercedes Benz of dentistry, the preventive resins with the use of air abrasion. This is revolutionary. Air abrasion also helps me the dentist each day with my cosmetic dentistry. I air abrade all my small fillings, which results in no line around the filling when it is finished. This is a problem for many dentist's with the line around the filling and how to get rid of it. If you air abrade the preparation prior to filling it there is no line. This means to the patient a more cosmetic filling.

I also use air abrasion each day with my crowns. I air abrade the inside of the crown and it increases the bond strength when the crown is placed. I have been doing air abrasion for over 13years and have a unit in each of my opperatories at my new office. I use it that much. My first office I had one unit to start and was pulling it in the room when needed and found I use it more and more I bought one for each room. It really is state of the art but many dentists do not use it. I don't know the reason exactly, but it could be they need to be trained better on the unit or are afraid of incorporating new things. I love to learn as much as I can and that is why I go to so much continuing education. This is good for my patients and gives them the latest in the field.

Thanks for reading,

Dr. Aschacher