Periodontal treatment system and method
AssigneePipstek, LLC
InventorsEnrico E. DiVito, Douglas L. Glover, Kemmons A. Tubbs, Mark P. Colonna
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Methods and apparatuses for treating a root canal in a tooth or hard and/or soft tissue within a tooth and surrounding tissues by pulsing a laser light into a reservoir, preferably after introducing liquid fluid into the reservoir, so as to disintegrate, separate, or otherwise neutralize pulp, plaque, calculus, and/or bacteria within and adjacent the fluid reservoir without elevating the temperature of any of the dentin, tooth, bones, gums, other soft tissues, other hard tissues, and any other adjacent tissue more than about 5° C.
Claims26
A laser system for treating a root canal in a tooth prepared for treatment by forming an opening in a crown portion thereof and removing pulp from a pulp chamber in the crown and from an associated root canal to provide a space extending from the pulp chamber into the root canal and disposing a liquid medium in the space so as to fill at least part of the space extending into the root canal with the liquid medium, the system comprising a source of a laser light beam pulses and an elongate optical fiber tip having a proximal end operably connected to said source and configured to transmit said laser light beam pulses from the source along its length to a distal end portion thereof, said optical fiber tip being dimensioned to enable the tip to be inserted into the tooth through the opening so as to dispose its tip end down into the liquid medium and to cause laser light beam pulses to be emitted from the tip end generally omnidirectionally into liquid medium in the canal adjacent the tip to provide photoaccoustic waves in the liquid medium having a sufficient intensity to disintegrate pulp in the canal without raising the temperature of adjacent tooth structure by an amount sufficient to cause substantial damage thereto.
A system for treating a tooth having a crown portion containing a pulp chamber that communicates with an associated elongate root canal in a root extending into a gum adjacent the tooth to support the tooth in the mouth, the pulp chamber and root canal comprising pulp including nerve and other tissue extending from the pulp chamber into the root canal, wherein the tooth has been prepared for treatment by making an opening in the crown portion enabling access to the pulp chamber and associated root canal from outside the tooth and by removing at least part of the pulp therein to provide a space in the pulp chamber extending into the root canal and accessible from outside the tooth through the opening, the system comprising:
- a liquid medium for being disposed in the first and second portions of the space in wetting contact with pulp adjacent said space and in a volume sufficient to establish an immersion level adjacent the pulp chamber;
- an elongate optical fiber tip having a proximal end operably connectable to a source of laser light energy and configured to admit laser light energy from said source into said proximal end of said tip and to conduct said laser light along the length of said tip to a distal tip end thereof,
- said optical fiber tip dimensioned to be inserted through the opening in the crown portion into said space sufficient to cause its tip end to be immersed in the liquid medium to a position below the immersion level;
- and
- a source of pulsed laser light energy for generating pulses of laser light energy into said optical fiber tip as aforesaid, the tip end of the fiber optic being configured to cause laser light energy conducted along the length of the tip to be emitted in pulses from the tip end generally omnidirectionally into liquid medium adjacent the tip end in the space so as to induce formation of photoaccoustic waves propagating through liquid in the space and having an intensity sufficient to cause disintegration of pulp adjacent the space in wetted contact with the liquid medium and release of the same into admixture with the liquid medium.
A system for treating root canal and periodontal conditions, the system comprising:
- a liquid medium containing hydroxyl ions for being dispensed into an open space in a root canal or in periodontal space adjacent periodontal tissue;
- a source of pulsed laser light for applying an activating energy to the liquid medium in the space in the root canal or periodontal space in order to activate the liquid medium to thereby disintegrate unwanted tissue and material adjacent said spaces and in wetted contact with the liquid medium;
- an elongate optical fiber tip having a proximal end operably connected to the laser source and having an a distal tip end dimensioned so that pulsed light from the laser source is transmitted into and through the optical fiber tip for being emitted into the liquid medium in the spaces to induce a succession of photoacoustic waves propagating through said liquid medium and of sufficient intensity to cause disintegration of the aforesaid unwanted tissue and material;
- and
- said distal end of said optical fiber having a tapered shape so as to induce emission of laser light from the tip end generally omnidirectionally into liquid medium adjacent the tip end.
A laser system for treating a root canal in a tooth prepared for treatment by forming an opening in a crown portion thereof and removing pulp from a pulp chamber in the crown and from an associated root canal to provide a space extending from the pulp chamber into the root canal and disposing a liquid medium in the space so as to fill at least part of the space extending into the root canal with the liquid medium, the system comprising a source of a laser light beam pulses and an elongate optical fiber tip having a proximal end operably connected to said source and configured to transmit said laser light beam pulses from the source along its length to a distal end portion thereof, said optical fiber tip being dimensioned to enable the tip to be inserted into the tooth through the opening so as to dispose its tip end down into the liquid medium and to cause laser light beam pulses to be emitted from the tip end generally omnidirectionally into liquid medium in the canal adjacent the tip to provide photoaccoustic waves in the liquid medium having a sufficient intensity to disintegrate pulp in the canal without raising the temperature of adjacent tooth structure by an amount sufficient to cause substantial damage thereto.
A system for treating a tooth having a crown and one or more roots extending from the crown into a gum adjacent the tooth to support the tooth in the mouth, the crown containing a pulp chamber that communicates with an associated elongate root canal in a diseased root in need of treatment, the pulp chamber and diseased root canal containing pulp that extends generally continuously from the root canal into the pulp chamber and which includes necrotic material and associated pathology, wherein the tooth has been prepared for treatment by making an opening in the crown portion enabling access to the pulp chamber and associated root canal from outside the tooth and by extirpating at least part of the pulp therein to provide a space in the pulp chamber extending into the root canal and accessible from outside the tooth through the opening, the system comprising:
- a liquid medium for being placed in the space in wetting contact with pulp adjacent said space;
- an elongate optical fiber tip having a proximal end operably connectable to a source of laser light equipped to emit a succession of laser light pulses, a proximal end of the optical fiber tip being configured to admit the succession of laser light pulses from the source into its proximal end and to conduct the pulses of laser light along its length to a distal end thereof,
- the tip being dimensioned for insertion through the opening in the crown portion into the space sufficient to cause its distal tip end to be immersed in the liquid medium;
- and
- the distal end of the optical fiber tip being shaped to cause the succession of pulses of laser light to be emitted from the distal end generally omnidirectionally into liquid medium adjacent the tip end in the space so as to induce formation of a corresponding succession of photoaccoustic waves propagating through the liquid medium in the space and having an intensity sufficient to cause disintegration of pulp immersed in the liquid medium adjacent the distal end and so as to release the disintegrated pulp including necrotic material and associated pathology into admixture with the liquid medium for being withdrawn from the space for disposal outside the tooth.
A system for treating root canal and periodontal conditions, the system comprising:
- a liquid medium containing hydroxyl ions for being dispensed into an open space in a root canal or in periodontal space adjacent periodontal tissue;
- a source of pulsed laser light for applying an activating energy to the liquid medium in the space in the root canal or periodontal space in order to activate the liquid medium to thereby disintegrate unwanted tissue and material adjacent said spaces and in wetted contact with the liquid medium;
- an elongate optical fiber tip having a proximal end operably connected to the laser source and having an a distal tip end dimensioned so that pulsed light from the laser source is transmitted into and through the optical fiber tip for being emitted into the liquid medium in the spaces to induce a succession of photoacoustic waves propagating through said liquid medium and of sufficient intensity to cause disintegration of the aforesaid unwanted tissue and material;
- and
- said distal end of said optical fiber having a tapered shape so as to induce emission of laser light from the tip end generally omnidirectionally into liquid medium adjacent the tip end.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.