Hemostasis and Coagulation with Ablative Soft-Tissue Dental Lasers and Hot-Tip Devices

Erbium laser wavelengths circa 3,000 nm are highly energy efficient and spatially accmate for photothermal ablation; their photothermal coagulation depths are significantly shorter than gingival blood vessel diameters. Carbon dimdde (CO~ laser wavelengths circa 10,000 nm are exh·emely effective and spatially accmate photothermal ablation tools with exemplary coagulation ability as a result of a close match between their photothermal coagulation depths and the dian1eters of oral soft-tissue blood capillaries. In nonablative applications> coagulation depth can be increased for long pulses with extended heat propagation-driven coagulation depth in excess of the photothermal coagulation depth. Unlike C02 and erbium lasers, soft-tissue ablative dental diodes are contactthermomechanical cutting devices. Their coagulation depth depends on the degree of the diode's glass tip charring and can range from sub-millimeter (heat propagation-driven coagulation for significantly charred tips) to multi-millimeter (photothermal radiant coagulation for poorly charred tips). he key to the success of soft-tissue ablative dental lasers is their ability to simultaneously cut and coagulate the tissue. Although the optical, structural, and thermodynamic properties of soft tissue (including optical PETER VITRUK, PHD, MINSTP, CPHYS, DABLS