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US 11,589,953 B2Granted
Methods and apparatus for periodontal scaling and debridement and gum tissue ablation for treating periodontal and peri-implant disease
OwnerBennett H. Jacobyinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present disclosure is directed to tools, systems and methods for recontouring/reshaping gum tissue by engaging a consumable tip on a dental hand tool to abrade/ablate excess or mal-contoured gum tissue to allow better visualization of the tooth/implant structure and reduce the periodontal pockets to provide improved access for cleaning. In some embodiments, the dental hand tool may use vibrational movement, longitudinal reciprocating movement, rotational movement, reciprocating rotational movement, or a combination of any of the above movement schemes. In some embodiments, a consumable tip may be directed for cleaning tooth/implant surfaces and for recontouring/reshaping gum tissue.
Claims25
A system for recontouring gum tissue, comprising:
- a dental tool having a tip mounting structure;
- and
- a working tip attached to the tip mounting structure, the working tip formed as an elongated member having a proximal end and a distal end, and comprising
- at least one gum tissue removal portion on the outer surface of the working tip that when brought in contact with a patient's gum tissue and actuated, will remove gum tissue and comprising a plurality of portions defined by generally flat surfaces extending generally parallel to an axis defined by the proximal end to distal end direction of the working tip to form a series of generally flat ring-shaped portions and a plurality of generally planar portions extending in a direction orthogonal to the axis defined by the proximal end to distal end direction of the tip, with at least two of the generally planar portions separated by portions defined by generally flat surfaces to define contiguous sections of the outer surface of the tip.
1 more element
A tip for use in recontouring gum tissue with a dental tool, comprising:
- an elongated member having a proximal end and a distal end;
- a counterpart attachment structure for mounting to a tip mounting structure accessible at the proximal end, such that upon mounting to a dental tool the tip may be actuated by utilization of the dental tool;
- and
- at least one gum tissue removal portion on the outer surface of the tip that when brought in contact with a patient's gum tissue and actuated, will remove gum tissue, and comprising a plurality of portions defined by generally flat surfaces extending generally parallel to an axis defined by the proximal end to distal end direction of the working tip to form a series of generally flat ring-shaped portions and a plurality of generally planar portions extending in a direction orthogonal to the axis defined by the proximal end to distal end direction of the tip, with at least two of the generally planar portions separated by portions defined by generally flat surfaces to define contiguous sections of the outer surface of the tip.
1 more element
A method of removing gum tissue to allow better visualization and reduction of periodontal pockets, the method comprising:
- mounting a tip on a dental tool, the tip formed as an elongated member having a proximal end and a distal end, the tip further comprising at least one gum tissue removal portion on the outer surface of the tip comprising a portion including features that remove gum tissue upon activation;
- contacting the mounted tip against a patient's gum tissue to be removed;
- and
- actuating the dental tool to remove the patient's gum tissue at a point of contact with the mounted tip, wherein removing gum tissue comprises removing at least a portion of the patient's gingival crest;
- and
- effecting debris removal of accretions from a surface of a tooth or a dental implant with the tip during the same procedure as the gum tissue removal by contacting the surface with the tip.
3 more elements
A method of removing gum tissue, the method comprising:
- mounting a tip on a dental tool, the tip formed as an elongated member having a proximal end and a distal end, the tip further comprising at least one gum tissue removal portion on the outer surface of the tip comprising a portion including features that remove gum tissue upon activation;
- and
- contacting the mounted tip against a patient's gum tissue to be ablated comprises, inserting the distal end of the tip into a periodontal pocket or peri-implant pocket and actuating the dental tool with the mounted tip to remove the gum tissue including at least a portion of the patient's gingival crest and adjacent marginal gingiva to reduce the depth of the periodontal pocket or peri-implant pocket.
A system for recontouring gum tissue, comprising:
- a dental tool having a tip mounting structure;
- and
- a working tip attached to the tip mounting structure, the working tip formed as an elongated member having a proximal end and a distal end, and comprising
- a base portion and a distal tapering portion, wherein the distal tapering portion comprises a plurality of portions defined by generally flat surfaces extending generally parallel to an axis defined by the proximal end to distal end direction of the working tip and a plurality of generally planar portions extending in a direction orthogonal to the axis defined by the proximal end to distal end direction of the working tip, with at least with at least two of the generally planar portions separated by portions defined by generally flat surfaces to define contiguous tiers receding stepwise towards the distal end of the working tip.
1 more element
A tip for use in recontouring gum tissue with a dental tool, comprising:
- an elongated member having a proximal end and a distal end;
- a counterpart attachment structure for mounting to a tip mounting structure accessible at the proximal end, such that upon mounting to a dental tool the tip may be actuated by utilization of the dental tool;
- a base portion near the proximal end;
- and
- a distal tapering portion comprising a plurality of portions defined by generally flat surfaces extending generally parallel to an axis defined by the proximal end to distal end direction of the tip and a plurality of generally planar portions extending in a direction orthogonal to the axis defined by the proximal end to distal end direction of the tip, with at least with at least two of the generally planar portions separated by portions defined by generally flat surfaces to define contiguous tiers receding stepwise towards the distal end of the tip.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.