According to information provided
by the manufacturer, 5 years after LANAP
treatment, 95% of all patients remain stable.1
PerioLase is also designed for intraoral soft-tissue
dental, general, oral-maxillofacial, and cosmetic surgery.
It is intended for ablating, incising, excising,
vaporization, and coagulation of soft tissue.
Ease of Use
According to MDT, PerioLase is versatile and
easy to use. When the 9 dentists who participated in
the evaluation of PerioLase were asked to rate its
ease of use, 6 rated it as excellent, 2 rated it as very
good, and 1 rated it as good. One evaluator said the
laser is “extremely easy to use compared to other
[lasers].” Another evaluator described the laser as
having a “very simple menu-driven design.”
Size and Weight
When asked about the importance of size and
weight when purchasing a laser, 2 rated them as
important to very important, 3 were neutral on the
importance, 3 said they are somewhat important,
and 1 said they are not important at all.
The evaluators were then asked to rate the size
and weight of PerioLase. Four rated the size as excellent
to very good, 4 rated size as good, and 1 rated it
as fair. One evaluator described the size as “reasonable—
large but easy to move.” Another said the
laser is “easy to roll through doorways.”
With regard to weight, 4 evaluators rated
PerioLase as excellent to very good, 4 rated it as
good, and 1 rated it as fair. One evaluator described
the laser as “heavier than some but very portable.”
Another evaluator said that the weight “is not
noticeable because of good wheels.”
Cost and Cost Effectiveness
The PerioLase costs about $1374.00 per month
to lease. According to MDT, one half of one patient
per month covers the monthly lease
payment, with the other half of treatment
as profit.
When the evaluators were asked to
rate the cost and cost effectiveness of
PerioLase, 5 rated it as excellent, 3 rated
it as very good, and 1 rated it as good.
“Cost—always too much,” said 1 evaluator.
However, he went on to say,
“Effectiveness—absolutely wonderful.
I’m a periodontist and this has been my
primary treatment for periodontitis for
the past 8 years with great success.”
Another evaluator said, “I paid for my
laser in 1-1/2 months of use.”
Maintenance Requirements
The evaluators rated the maintenance
requirements associated with
PerioLase. Six rated the laser as excellent,
1 rated it as very good, and 2 rated
it as good. One evaluator explained
that he has 2 PerioLase models, “the
original purchased 8+ years ago, never
serviced yet. The newer model bought 4
years ago, also never needed service
yet.” Another evaluator said that he
returned his unit for routine service
after 2 years and the manufacturer
“supplied me with a loaner while my
unit was being serviced.”
Training
Good training was very important for
all the evaluators when they were asked
what characteristics they look for when
purchasing a laser. Since 2002, MDT has
been an ADA-CERP and AGD-PACE
recognized provider through the Institute
for Advanced Laser Dentistry. When the
evaluators were asked to rate the training
they received with the PerioLase, 8 rated
it as excellent and 1 rated it as very good.
One evaluator described it as “the best
CE ever.” Another evaluator said that the
training was long “but very good and
necessary.” A third evaluator said, “No
other laser company offers the same quality
or thorough training that MDT does.”
Overall Satisfaction
All 9 evaluators said that they would
definitely recommend PerioLase to their
dental colleagues, and all said they
would definitely purchase the laser in the
future. When asked to give their overall
satisfaction rating for PerioLase, 8 rated
it as excellent and 1 rated it as very
good. With regard to training, 1 evaluator
said that the training was “very thorough
and made me feel comfortable
with the laser before integrating into my
practice.” Another evaluator noted that
“the extensive training that Millennium
Dental Technologies offers makes use of
the unit very simple.”
Reference
1. Yukna RA, Carr RL, Evans GH. Histologic evaluation
of an Nd:YAG laser-assisted new attachment
procedure in humans. Int J Periodontics
Restorative Dent. 2007;27(6):577-587.