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Gum surgery to treat disease and infection is often painful, invasive, and can actually change the look of your smile. Fortunately, there’s also LANAP®, a laser procedure that can help you avoid many of these problems.
Gum disease is a preventable condition that still affects nearly 50% of American adults aged 30 and older. And for many years, the treatment for advanced gum disease and deterioration was surgery. This was often painful and required a long recovery.
Nowadays, a procedure called LANAP® offers a similar treatment for gum disease that doesn’t have all the difficult side effects of traditional surgery.
At Ueno Center Dental Specialists, we provide LANAP as well as a number of other options for the treatment of multiple stages of gum disease. Jeremy K. Ueno, DMD, and our other providers want to help you recover safely and easily from this condition so you have a reason to smile.
LANAP 101
LANAP stands for “laser-assisted new attachment procedure.” It utilizes lasers, rather than traditional dentistry tools, to treat gum disease and its effects.
It’s approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and after being introduced in 1990, it quickly became one of the more often used treatment options for less invasive dental and gum surgery.
Traditional gum surgery requires cutting out the compromised gum tissue and suturing the wounds before healthy tissue can be attached (if necessary). LANAP can remove the unhealthy tissue and kill the leftover bacteria while also priming the area for regrowth.
In a 2023 study, patients who received LANAP for the treatment of advanced periodontitis had positive results with shallow probing depth post-procedure, and all patients requesting additional laser therapy.
LANAP vs. traditional gum surgery
Getting any kind of dental procedure can feel overwhelming — scary, even — but choosing LANAP over traditional gum surgery actually makes your life a lot easier. Here’s why we believe LANAP is the better option.
Pain-free
Most people are afraid of dental procedures because they’re worried about pain. And traditional gum surgery is often quite painful, especially afterward. But LANAP doesn’t cause the same long-term pain post-procedure, nor is the procedure itself uncomfortable, so you don’t have to worry.
Less recovery time
In the same vein, LANAP’s recovery time is much less than that of gum surgery. It doesn’t require the kind of healing the latter procedure does, and as such, you don’t have to prepare for a long recovery. In fact, you could even get the procedure on your lunch break and return to work the same day.
Less invasive
Invasive dental procedures are not only uncomfortable, but they can make some people very anxious. This procedure is minimally invasive and doesn’t require dental sedation, although we can provide it, depending on your needs.
No changes to your smile
Sometimes, when your gums require surgery, it can cause changes to the way your smile looks. You could notice a receding look to your gums, which had to be cut to remove infected tissue. But with LANAP, we don’t need to cut your gums to reduce the depth of the pockets, meaning your smile won't change.
Reduces the need for further treatments
After gum surgery, patients sometimes need a bone or gum graft. But the lasers we use with LANAP actually promote bone and tissue growth on their own, making it less likely that you’ll need these additional treatments.
Get LANAP today
LANAP is a good option for those who require treatment for gum disease but want the safest, least invasive treatment option available. Also, it allows for healthy tissue regrowth, and it keeps your smile intact.
Make an appointment at our Campbell, California, office today. Call or visit us online.