Air abrasion allows us to treat certain areas of decay very comfortably without anesthetic and without using the "drill". To better understand how air abrasion works, think sophisticated sand blaster!

In the image on the left, the area identified by the red arrow was diagnosed with the aid of the Diagnodent to have beginning decay. The deep grove in the first bicuspid (yellow arrow) was shown to have pre-decay.

This image shows the deep groove in the first bicuspid that has been cleansed of all stain and organic debris with air abrasion. The same process was used to comfortably remove the area of decay on the tooth on the right.

The deep groove of the first bicuspid (on the left) has been filled in or sealed with a material called a sealant. This material will now protect this area from developing decay. The tooth on the right is now restored with a tooth colored material called a composit. An argon laser was used to harden both of these materials to resemble natural tooth structure.

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