HydroAbrasion:  NO Drill Dentistry

Water / Air Abrasion = Drill-Free Dentistry : Water / Air abrasion or Hydroabrasion system is a mini-sandblaster.  Instead of turning on a whirring drill, we give you a pair of goggles and then directs a thin, high-speed stream of water and air-blown microscopic particles that gently remove decay from your tooth.

Advantages: There's no heat, no vibration, and many times it can all be done without any anesthetic therefore no numbing your mouth. You may feel some coolness but typically it will not hurt.  A suction hose removes the gritty particles, which are made from aluminum oxide, a tasteless substance commonly found in toothpaste. It's harmless if accidentally swallowed.

An air abrasion system works best on small cavities that will be filled with non-metallic materials (tooth colored bonding). This works very well in conjunction with the DIAGNOdent and Dental Ozone.  It is generally used to repair early tooth decay before it spreads. Because this system can be precisely directed, there's less tooth structure lost in preparing for a filling. And unlike regular dental drills, air abrasion systems will not produce tiny fractures in tooth structure.  Hydroabrasion is used in conjunction with Micro-Dentistry. Dr. Gordon is a member of the Congress of Minimally Invasive Dentistry and the use of HydroAbrasion fits in quite well with this mindset. 

As a result of the successful introduction of fluoride into water supplies and toothpastes, tooth surfaces have become more resistant to decay.  Although, decay is still present, but it is often concentrated in tiny, hidden parts of the teeth, where it can easily be missed until it has broken into the softer inner portion of the tooth (dentin or pulp).  That is why we use the DIAGNOdent (Painless Laser Decay detector), to find these tiny areas of decay.

Hydroabrasion is a major part of MicroDentistry techniques, because it can precisely remove very tiny layers of tooth structure. We use Special (Decay Detecting) dyes to assist in the location of these tiny pockets of decay, then we utilize Hydroabrasion to gently open and remove the decay, and finally, the tooth is bonded with tooth-colored filling materials or a tooth-colored sealant.

Disadvantages: Air abrasion does not work in the removal of existing silver amalgam fillings, and the aluminum oxide powder can be messy. Because it uses a high-pressure air / water stream, there's a minor possibility of injecting air into the cheeks or gums.  Since an air abrasion system can be costly, only about ten percent of US dentists have air abrasion systems in their offices.

These preparations were performed without the use of Anesthetic.   At this point they will be treated with Dental Ozone and then filled with Tooth-Colored Bonding.

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