2022 Dentist of the Year Dr. Manrina Rhode has sourced some revolutionising new dental technologies for her recently opened DRMR super clinic – and is one of the first in the UK to introduce them to the UK. The tech is designed to enhance her patients’ experience, irradicating avoidable pain, dental fear, needle phobia and associated anxiety, whilst optimising oral health.

The cutting-edge WaterLase uses energy and a spray of water to perform a wide range of dental procedures, in a gentle, minimally invasive way. It is a highly precise all-tissue laser, able to painlessly cut through teeth, soft tissue and bone.

Waterlase makes treatments more comfortable, enabling a wide range of procedures to be performed without the drill, or need for numbing injections or anaesthetic – so alleviating discomfort, blood loss and stress. It allows for greater treatment options, often cutting down on the number of clinic visits. The gentle Waterlase system has been shown to cause less swelling, with faster recovery and healing times. WaterLase can very effectively and comfortably replace the heat, vibration, and pressure associated with the traditional drill for procedures such as saving severely decayed teeth, exposing an unerupted tooth, or removing plaque.

Looking at the science, teeth are partially made up of water and when the laser makes contact with the tooth it excites the water molecules to cut through the tooth. With single-use disposable tips, the laser also carries less risk of cross-contamination.

Dr Manrina’s has also just installed a digitally advanced iTero scanner for a multitude of restorative treatments – including clear aligners for teeth straightening, dental implants, crowns and bridges – replacing the outdated method of taking impressions in mouth-gagging putty.

Using a small hand-held wand, the scanner is inserted into the patient’s mouth and can capture over 6,000 images a second of teeth and gums, generating an immediate 3D model which can be viewed on screen. The scan is minimally invasive, the patient can breathe and swallow as normal, and the process can be easily paused at the request of the patient. Once the image is captured it is possible to demonstrate what a patient’s restored teeth could look like in an image of their face within seconds.

The perfectly accurate digital impression is then sent electronically to the lab for work to commence immediately on the treatment plan, without having to wait for physical putty impressions to arrive.

Another London first is Manrina’s pioneering use of AssistDent artificial intelligence technology to identify the earliest signs of dental disease within seconds from x-rays which otherwise might go unseen. The subtle signs of early-stage tooth decay can be difficult to detect on traditional x-rays, so the opportunity for preventative measures can be missed, which can have a significant impact on improving the patient’s oral health before any long-term damage is done.

The practice team simply imports the patient’s x-rays into the AI software; it identifies and flags up the earliest signs of disease, and generates a report. All this within around 8 seconds. Manrina is then able to validate the findings and recommend preventive treatments.

Manrina’s clinic has also installed ChairSyde, an interactive platform to help explain dental conditions and treatment options to patients, using a library of sophisticated animations and visualisations. This helps aid a patient’s understanding, allowing them to make informed decisions and be aware of their treatment journey ahead.

Talking about her advanced in-clinic technologies, Dr Manrina said: “My super clinic is kitted out with the latest technologies available to dentists today. We have looked across Europe – and beyond – to ensure our patients enjoy the best possible experience, using the latest advances available, making them feel as comfortable, relaxed and well looked after as possible.”

The super comfortable memory foam upholstered dental chair in the DRMR clinic was made to order to Manrina’s specifications. The top-of-the-range Stern Webber – which was transported from Italy – has a built-in computer to help it move seamlessly. It spins to the optimal treatment position and can automatically rotate to 90 degrees, which aids face-to-face interaction and communication which puts patients at ease. It also has a pneumatic headrest with multi-axis rotation to allow it to be adjusted to cradle the neck and head.

The chair incorporates has a number of exciting tech features to improve the patient experience:

• An automatic sterilisation and disinfection program for all-important cross-infection protection
• Heated water/air, warmed when used in the mouth to prevent sensitivity
• A sensor that autofills the patient’s cup
• An electric hand motor for a super quiet, smooth drill
• An X-ray device mounted on a chair so the patient doesn’t need to move to another room for scanning
• A high-resolution camera embedded in the chair light which allows patients can see what’s happening in their mouth displayed on a large screen.

For the dentist, there are also a number of technologies that make treatment safer, and more comfortable to perform:

• Ambidextrous delivery style for all-round operation
• Multi-function wireless foot control which avoids hazards and isolates the chair when operating the dynamic instrumentation
• Special modes to accommodate dentists performing implant, endodontic and restorative treatments
• Computer programme which allows technicians to dial in if there is a problem

You can read more about the technological firsts and sophisticated treatments by visiting here