Burnsville Orthodontist Uses Soft Tissue Lasers in Treatment

LAKEVILLE, PRIOR LAKE AND SAVAGE, MN – It is widely known that aesthetics play a vital role in orthodontic treatment for Savage, Prior Lake , Burnsville, St. Paul and Lakeville orthodontics patients.While orthodontist Dr. Trudy Bonvino of Cosmopolitan Orthodontics is concerned with correcting her patients’ alignment and bite issues to make sure each patient has proper oral function and normal tooth wear, she realizes most of her patients simply want to feel more confident when they smile, she said. Her use of a soft tissue laser makes it possible for her to achieve everyone’s goals.A soft tissue laser is used to safely eliminate soft tissue, such as excessive gum tissue. Gum tissue sometimes needs to be removed for medical or cosmetic purposes, said Bonvino, who treats Burnsville pediatric orthodontics cases.Bonvino uses a soft tissue laser when she needs to expose an adult tooth that is impacted, has not yet erupted, or cannot erupt because of its proximity to other nearby teeth. She advises patients there is no need to feel apprehensive at the thought of a laser being used in the mouth. It’s a painless procedure. Bonvino begins by applying an anesthetic to numb the area – no shots are needed. Once the area is numb, the laser is used to remove a small amount of gum tissue to expose the tooth. At that point, Bonvino can cement a bracket to the newly exposed tooth, tie it in to the arch wire and begin guiding it into the appropriate position more quickly.“There also are times when we must use the soft tissue laser to remove excess gum tissue from the lower second molars so we can attach brackets to them,” said Bonvino. “Removing some of the tissue makes it possible us to achieve a good fit on the molars.”Another popular use for a soft tissue laser among orthodontists is for frenectomies. Sometimes patients who have a wide space between their upper front two teeth require removal of a frenulum – a small tissue fold that prevents the teeth from being moved closer together with traditional or invisible braces alone. Once that fold is removed, orthodontic treatment can close the space.There are other times when the soft tissue laser comes to the rescue for purely cosmetic reasons. “Everyone is likely familiar with the term ‘gummy smile,’” Bonvino said. “The laser can help improve the appearance of a gummy smile.”A gummy smile is a term that describes an excessive amount of gum tissue that can be seen above the front teeth when a person smiles. Sometimes gum tissue can give the smile an appearance of being uneven if it covers more of one tooth than of the tooth beside it. The laser can be used to expose more tooth structure and recreate gum lines to reveal an aesthetically pleasing smile.A Faster, Less Invasive Treatment OptionHaving a laser in the office has been a game-changer for orthodontic treatment, Bonvino said. Before Cosmopolitan Orthodontics had access to this useful tool, Bonvino referred patients to an oral surgeon to have teeth exposed. Being able to do this procedure in the office without surgical intervention means patients get started down the path to an optimum smile much more quickly. Avoiding surgical treatment means no cutting, bleeding or suturing. That is something that gives patients a reason to smile, she said.© 2013 Sinai Marketing and Dr. Jennifer Eisenhuth. Authorization to post is granted, with the stipulation that Sinai Marketing and Dr. Jennifer Eisenhuth are credited as sole source. Linking to other sites from this article is strictly prohibited, with the exception of herein imbedded.