The Dentist’s Tools: A Guide to What They Do and How They Work

Fear is crippling. Life is never enjoyable when fear is always looming over your head. Fear affects our ability to enjoy life, and at times we might miss out on things that can better our lives, such as receiving essential dental services near you.

Dental anxiety has many causes, but the main ones are the horror stories told about the dental chair. Some fear the dentist’s tools since they may seem or sound horrific. However, knowing more about the dental tools that The Colony dentist uses, some of the fear will vanish.

Without further ado, let’s peer into a guide to dentist’s tools.

The Dentist’s Tools: A Guide to What They Do and How They Work

The sound and sight of many dental tools may be enough to put many people off. But once you understand how these tools work and their purposes, you will come to realize that they are not as scary as you think.

There are various dental tools (that we will discuss in detail) that are used and range from simple mirrors to dental lasers, all with one specific goal – to enhance your smile.

Types of Dental Tools

A host of dental tools are necessary to ensure. From sterilization to treating patients, dentistry is all about using various instruments. With the latest dental technology, our dentist can meet all our patient’s dental needs. Here are the basic types or categories of instruments every dentist has, regardless of the speciality:

Dental Chairs

A dental chair is essential since it makes the patient and our dentist comfortable during treatment. If the chair is equipped with modern technologies, then there will be an increase in productivity and builds confidence in our patients.

A good dental chair has foot control, a backrest with a soft cushion, an easily accessible control panel to adjust the chair position and programmable sit positions.

Digital Radiography

Digital radiography is essential since it is among the main diagnostic tools that can help view a patient’s teeth and jaw. There are several types of dental digital radiography tools, such as intra-oral x-ray sensors, panoramic x-rays, cone beam systems, and cone beam computerized tomography (CBCT).

Dental Lasers

Dental lasers are a minimally invasive treatment that causes less pain and bleeding. They are used in treating tongue ties, reshaping overgrown gum tissue, tooth preparation for composite resin, and much more.

Sterilization Equipment

Infection control is vital in any dental practice. The dental sterilization equipment prevents any cross-contamination. Some tools used are sterilizers, autoclaves, dry heat sterilizers, washers, dryers, and chemical vapor sterilization.

Endodontic Equipment

Suppose you need a root canal. Specific tools are used to clean and shape the root canal. These tools can be dental pulp testers, apex locators, endodontic handpieces, etc.

Dental Handpieces

These are the common and essential tools in any dental practice. A handpiece is necessary for a routine dental cleaning and more complex surgical procedures. Some of the types of handpieces used are:

• Laboratory handpieces
• High-speed handpieces
• Hygiene handpieces
• Specialist surgical handpieces

Surgical Instruments

These are high-quality, user-friendly instruments that our dentist uses for simple and complex surgeries. Some of the surgical instruments are:

• Elevators
• Chisels
• Osteotomes
• Tissue forceps
• Grafting instruments
• Forceps

How Do Dental Tools Work?

Most dental tools never sound friendly, but they are less scary when you know how they work. Let’s check the various tools and how they work.

Mouth Mirror

You most probably know this tool. The mirror allows our dentist to peer into every crevice and corner of your mouth. The mirror can also be used to move the tongue or other tissue aside to gain a better view.

Scaler

Periodontal disease is marked by the presence of tartar. A scaler is able to reach the hard-to-reach areas that a string of dental floss cannot. These days, dentists use ultrasonic scalers that remove the tartar without scraping the tooth.

Sickle Probe

It is also referred to as a dental explorer used to detect oral issues like cavities. It comes in various sizes but has hooks at the end.

Suction Device

Our dentist uses two types of suction devices; a low-level suction device is a saliva ejector that removes saliva and water from the mouth. The other type is the high-level suction, which removes tooth fragments, tartar, and old fillings.

Dental Drill

Most patients dread the drill. However, this tool is what removes tooth decay. Before our dentist uses the drill, you will receive local anesthesia.

Now that you are a bit acquainted with the different dental tools, you can contact us at Main Dentistry to schedule an appointment.