Abstract
There has been a volcanic eruption of technologies in Endodontics over the past 20 years, including Laser Activated Irrigation (LAI) from 2007. In recent years, SWEEPS technology was introduced in the market. A dual pulse Er:YAG laser emission produces fluid cavitation in the root canal system as result of the photoacoustic phenomenon generated by ultra-short pulse energy, delivered by a laser tip kept stationary in the access cavity of the tooth. In this way, the use of EDTA and NaOCl, along the correct protocol, improve the cleaning and decontaminating effect of root canals when compared to conventional methods. Differences among the SWEEPS protocol and other erbium laser activated irrigation protocols are underlined, explaining the basic physics of photothermal and photoacoustic effects in dentistry.
Learning Objectives
- Explain the different mechanisms of the various laser techniques used in endodontics.
- Demonstrate the ability of certain techniques to irrigate the entire endodontic system simultaneously.
- Demonstrate the advantage of positioning the laser tip in the access cavity rather than in the canal.
- Present studies comparing the antibacterial efficacy of different disinfection techniques in endodontics.
- Discuss the advantages of LAI versus ultrasonic and SNI techniques for cleaning and disinfecting the root canal system.
