Gum disease has recently been reported to affect over fifty percent of people beyond 50 years of age. Bacteria are the cause of gum disease, and going undetected can cause the patient to lose teeth. Other health problems have been positively linked to periodontal disease including an increase in incidents of heart disease and stroke. Also, it has been found that bacteria from oral infections can lead to and aggravate diseases of the respiratory system such as pneumonia.

Beverly Hills dentist, Dr. Paul O'Malley, likes to be ahead of the trends when it comes to using high-tech tools in his practice. ?I make sure that I am always researching the cutting-edge technology of dentistry and offering that to my patients.?, he explains. ?I use a high resolution microscope to identify the specific bacteria in the mouth so I can precisely diagnose the hygiene needed remove it.?

The Trinocular Compound Microscope is a state-of-the-art 40x by 1600x microscope that allows the doctor, the hygienist, and the patient to digitally view moving bacteria from the mouth on a computerized video screen. This instrument takes the guesswork out of destroying germs.

When a patient simply needs decay removed from a tooth, Dr. O'Malley can apply his drill-free dentistry by air-abrasion which is like a mini sandblaster aimed to take the decay out of the tooth with a fine aluminum oxide (baking soda) powder. Dr. O'Malley says drill-free air abrasion dentistry is every patient's dream. ?There's no whining drills, no burning smell (the teeth never get hot), no vibration, and no anesthetic required. It's almost no dentistry, as we knew it! ?

Dr. O'Malley further states, ?This drill-free dentistry goes hand-in-glove with DIAGNOdent, a laser system that finds decayed areas prior to even seeing the hole on the surface of the tooth, thereby locating decayed areas that x-rays do not detect. Drill-free air abrasion dentistry allows me to practice micro-dentistry, the removal of small hard to get to fissure and pit decay.?

Prior to this technology the dentist had to remove healthy tooth structure to clean out a small hole. Often dentists were programmed to ?watch? teeth like this because using the tools available would cause the loss of too much tooth structure to get out the decay. Now with micro dentistry's air abrasion the decay is delicately removed without the large loss of healthy tooth structure.

Dr. O'Malley's philosophy is to use state of the art equipment to determine and remedy his patients' oral health while using biological, health-based dentistry. In this way he can effectively and comfortably help his patients improve their oral and overall health and smile.

Beverly Hills cosmetic dentist, Dr. Paul O'Malley, previously led the field of cosmetic dentistry in West Texas for 15 years then relocated to Southern California seven years ago, totaling 22 years of polished skills creating beautiful smiles. Dr. O'Malley is located in the dental offices of Beverly Hills Cosmetic Dentist, Kourosh Maddahi at 436 N. Roxbury Drive, Suite 202 and can be reached at 310-888-7797.