The success of dental medicine, whether you’re talking about cosmetic dental procedures or something as simple as a tooth cleaning, has always been dependent on technology. The invention of the first toothbrush with nylon bristles and a plastic handle in 1938 revolutionized dentistry, in that people could finally take care of their teeth at home in a reliable way. If you need proof, consider this: 100 years ago, a full 50% of North American adults were toothless. Today, only 10% of adults over the age of 65 have lost teeth.
From dental implants, with their 98% success rate, to cosmetic dental work for teeth whitening, the procedures offered at dental cosmetics clinics continue to evolve to improve tooth health and appearance. As Dental News reports, the implementation of Google Glass in many cosmetic dental clinics across the world is just another step toward improving cosmetic dental procedures.
Google Glass Increasingly Used to Protect Dentists and Their Patients
From family dentists to cosmetic family dentistry professionals, wearable technology is changing the face of dental medicine. Google Glass, effectively a set of eyeglasses with a built in microcomputer, has the ability to record videos and display patient information in real time. Dentists are using this technology to record cosmetic dentistry procedures, helping to protect themselves in any cases where a patient claims a dentist didn’t carry out the procedure correctly.
Of course, the main reason Google Glass is so popular among the dental community is because it helps dentists improve the quality of care offered to their patients. Using the wearable computer, dentists can pull up X-rays or their patients’ vital information with a voice command as they work, allowing them to better track things like allergies, tooth conditions, and the like. In effect, this means more accurate cosmetic dental procedures and fewer errors for patients, as Dovetail, a dental software company, writes.
An Unforeseen Benefit for a Struggling Technology
The success of Google Glass within the dental community comes as a surprise both to its developers and the dental professionals who are implementing the technology to become better dentists. Google, as Business Insider details, has had an exceptionally hard time marketing its wearable technology to the average consumer, mostly due to a lack of trust for technology following the revelations about the NSA’s spying practices.
Despite this, the company is expected to sell three million units by 2016, the majority of which will be bought by the dental and medical communities. Regardless of whether the technology finds a foothold in the wider consumer market, both dentists and their patients certainly seem to be pleased that such a useful piece of technology has found its way into dental clinics in the U.S. and beyond.
How would you feel if your dentist started using Google Glass? Give us your opinion in the comment section below.
