Dentistry seems to have evolved very fast over the last decade, is the reason mechanical (faster drills etc.) or chemical (deeper, quicker pain suppression) or a combination of both?
As a young man I remember the dentist’s chair with fear and trepidation, now it’s so much easier. What caused my fear? When I was in the navy I recall production line dentistry – lots of sailors, not too many dentists, and not too much time. In fact they were on loan army dentists being trained by the army to be dentists, a way to defer the costs of dental school.
They were in training, we were their ‘patients’ and neither will ever forget the experience. I remember one great big matelot from Nova Scotia that took it personally, he jumped out of the chair and chased the dentist for a half a block, till he was subdued by two even bigger leading seamen. That was then (just after the Korean war) and what a difference a few decades make.
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I have had the same experience and I think it is definitely a combination of mechanical and chemical techniques. And maybe fewer sadists going into dentistry. :-)
The advancements in dentistry equipment and chemicals over the last 25 years has been nothing short of phenomenal. I used to get sick and be sore for days after a visit to the dentist – now I’m fine before I even leave the office (waiting for the insurance coverage confirmation is the worst part). I even remarked about the improvement on a “new” procedure called sonic cleaning, and how the vibrations don’t hurt my toes anymore.
Neither. Improved techniques.
The reason is Money and Vanity.
More people are taking care of their teeth, giving the industry more more to improve techniques.
The urge to make money has never slowed. That’s the dirty secret about dentistry.
I went to a local dentist a while agon because we had moved to another state. This guy wants several thousand dollars to fix my mouth. I told my old dentist in another state about it, and she told me to get a second opinion because, “We didn’t leave your mouth in THAT bad of condition!”
There are also big improvements in ceramic epoxies, and UV/blue-light cured adhesives.
And 3D printed crowns from 3D images the dentist can take right in the office.
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