“Biocompatibility” – literally, compatibility with life (bio) – is something we most often talk about in relation to dental materials. When restoring teeth, for instance, a biological practice like ours opts for materials like ceramic and BPA-free composite instead of mercury amalgam, stainless steel, and other metals.
If there’s ever any question whether a patient might be reactive to a certain material, we do testing to make sure we use only products deemed safe for their unique biochemistry.
This commitment to biocompatibility is one of the most obvious ways in which biological dentistry stands apart from dentistry-as-usual. And this extends to clinical procedures and techniques, as well.
For instance, because mercury is so very toxic – especially when inhaled – safety when removing them is critical. You can’t just go in with a high speed drill without putting people at risk. (Check out this demonstration of how much mercury vapor is generated by drilling amalgam.) You can’t just chuck old amalgam in the trash or let it go out with the wastewater.
So we employ the IAOMT’s Safe Mercury Amalgam Removal Technique, or SMART. This strict and comprehensive protocol was designed to protect patients, dental workers, and our planet alike. Here’s a glimpse of what it involves:
Similarly, when we need to extract a tooth, we don’t just simply pull it out, pack the socket with gauze, and send the patient on their way. Instead, we’ve developed special protocols to ensure the fastest and best healing with the least pain and discomfort – protocols we regularly review and update in our constant quest to do the absolute best by our patients.
In fact, we just finished updating our surgical protocols, which now include the use of a dual-wavelength laser. Head on over to the services section of our site to learn more and find out what else is new.
