Fearing The Drill at Your Peterborough Dentist? Air Abrasion is the Answer!

Ask any of our experienced Peterborough dentists and they’ll tell you: for some people, few things are worse than the sound and feeling of a drill, even when under local anesthetic.  Many people will go out of their way to avoid having their teeth drilled, even if they have serious cavities that could become infected. But we have an alternative for those occasions: air abrasion! 

Our Peterborough dentists may be able to fix your cavity without you ever hearing the whine of a drill.

Our Air Abrasion Dentistry in Peterborough

What is air abrasion dentistry?  Basically, it’s like a tiny sandblaster.  Rather than drilling into your teeth, Dr. Christopher Moore & Associates uses a wand that blasts an abrasive mixture of particles (such as silica and\or baking powder) at the cavity.  This process knocks loose all the particles of decay on the teeth, which can be vacuumed away with suction.

Once the decay has been removed via air abrasion, we can go on to fill in the cavity just like normal.

There are several other advantages to air abrasion as well, including:

• There’s no need for anesthetic because any discomfort caused by air abrasion is extremely minimal and rare.
• Air abrasion minimizes the loss of healthy tooth material around the cavity.
• There’s less chance of a drill accidentally doing damage to the tooth or creating micro-fractures that could potentially encourage chipping later on.
• Air abrasion is quick, often enabling our team to work on several cavities in a single session, cutting down your annual dentist appointments.

Are there any downsides to air abrasion?  Not many!  

The biggest issue is that air abrasion only works on relatively shallow cavities.  If the cavity is close to the root of the tooth or if a root canal is called for, that will still need to be drilled. Otherwise, air abrasion is a great choice for children or anyone who is afraid of drills!  So, if you’ve been putting off dental work, contact Dr. Christopher Moore & Associates in Peterborough to learn more!