The LANAP® Protocol: Laser-Assisted Regeneration
Driven by the need to provide patients with hope for hopeless teeth in the dental chair, Robert H. Gregg, II, DDS, cofounder, president, and chairman of the board of Millennium Dental Technologies, Inc., sought to develop a protocol for treating moderate to severe periodontal disease with predictable and reproducible results. Utilizing his extensive background with lasers, he made it his mission to create better clinical outcomes in patients with periodontal disease. Gregg recalls, “I explored the possibilities of laser tissue interactions first, then the clinical applications to patients.”
According to Gregg, the LANAP® protocol “started with a few patients back in 1990 who were suffering from severe gingival disease and faced with tooth loss who simply refused to go through that experience.” Through years of performing thousands of procedures, Gregg’s understanding of laser and tissue interaction grew, and this led to the development of the LANAP protocol for the treatment of advanced periodontal disease and promoting new bone and periodontal connective tissue attachment and the PerioLase® MVP-7™.
An FDA-cleared laser treatment, the LANAP protocol offers a less painful, more successful alternative treatment to conventional surgery. LANAP = Laser Assisted Regeneration (LAR) treatment is the only scientifically research-proven methodology that results in true periodontal regeneration, new bone growth, and gingival tissue regeneration.
“We are saving a lot of teeth that would otherwise be extracted,” Gregg points out. “The patients are happy with the results because they have their natural teeth.”
The success of the LANAP protocol is rooted in laser physics and the unique interaction between the tissue in the mouth and the variable pulsed wavelength of the PerioLase MVP-7 1064 Nd:YAG dental laser. The PerioLase MVP-7 is a 6-watt free-running variable-pulsed Nd:YAG dental laser featuring digital technology and seven-pulse durations, which gives it the power and versatility to perform a wide range of laser procedures. The seven variable pulse durations can be thought of as “different lasers” in one device, as they have discrete and discriminating tissue interactions.
The LANAP=LAR treatment is one of the most successful protocols in treating gingival and periodontal disease because it can target the source of the inflammation without hurting or removing any healthy gingival tissue. This treatment can also slow or stop attachment loss, decrease pocket depth, and allow the body to recover from the chronic infection without the dentist needing to use a scalpel or sutures. Gregg adds, “This particular wavelength and delivery system and the pulsing way that it works is also very effective at detoxifying implant surfaces out of contact in the same way that it detoxifies root surfaces out of contact.”
The LANAP Training Continuum is an essential component of this protocol’s success. “Training is the only way you can learn the nuisances of using energy as a treatment modality. We tend to think energy or heat is something we get rid of, and here we are capturing and using it. That’s a very different concept—you must have training,” Gregg explains. This training is provided to Millennium’s customers for 1 year to gradually incorporate the more advanced protocol techniques.
“We have a 6-month return clinical guarantee on the results for LANAP; there is no company or product in the world that offers a clinical guarantee on their results. The reason we can offer that is because of the extensive and intensive training we provide. This includes 5 days of training spread over 12 months: 3 days initially, a day at 6 months, and another day at 12 months. That’s really the only way you can learn the nuisances of using energy as a treatment modality,” stresses Gregg. “With our training, you’re less likely to see bad results and more likely to have confidence—and that’s what it takes to be successful.”
Millennium Dental Technologies, Inc.
10945 South Street, Suite 104A
Cerritos, CA 90703
888-638-5262
