| interview Laser protocol for peri-implantitis treatment An interview with Dr Michał Nawrocki, Poland Laser is becoming essential for every modern dental practice. Moreover, from an educational standpoint, there are many benefi ts in terms of the personal and professional development of the practitioner. In this interview with implants— international magazine of oral implantology, Dr Michał Nawrocki explains how laser dentistry has helped to advance his practice and career and why dental laser, especially Fotona’s LightWalker, has become an essential part of his daily practice. What procedures do you perform with laser? Laser can be used in all fi elds of dentistry; however, I am mainly focused on implantology and surgery, as well as prosthodontics. In prosthodontics, it can be used for sul- cus conditioning, preparation for veneers and removal of complete ceramic crowns, as well as during more chal- lenging procedures like crown lengthening before tooth preparation. We can use it in gingivectomy (Nd:YAG laser) and bone recontouring (Er:YAG laser). Dr Nawrocki, you’ve been using laser since 2016. Looking back at your journey as a laser dentist, how has LightWalker impacted your everyday practice? I started my great adventure with Fotona’s LightWalker in 2016. Before that I had used a diode laser, but it was insuf- fi cient for me, and to be honest my knowledge of lasers, physics, indications and procedures was incomplete at the time. Then in January 2016, I invited Dr Ilay Maden to my clinic to conduct a course and teach my colleagues and me about various Er:YAG and Nd:YAG procedures with the LightWalker laser. A few months later, I decided to extend my knowledge about lasers by attending the Master of Science in Lasers in Dentistry presented by Prof. Norbert Gutknecht in Aachen. Now, I cannot imagine continuing my daily practice and treatments without having LightWalker. Sometimes, I use it as an additional tool during certain procedures, but very often it’s a crucial and necessary tool for me to use to conduct a particular procedure. Use of the Er:YAG laser Varian tip for granulation tissue removal, implant surface decontamination and surface ablation of infected bone. 38 1 2022 All my surgery cases are fi nished with photo-biomodulation using the Nd:YAG Genova handpiece. I have observed that wound healing is much faster and better in such cases owing to pain reduction, disinfection, reduction of oedema and the laser’s analgesic function. Sometimes, I have to conduct an endodontic treatment during the procedure (which is quite rare and normally done by my colleagues), in which case I really appreciate the deep disinfection with Nd:YAG, which offers the highest bacterial reduction in comparison with other wavelengths, and the Er:YAG SWEEPS [shock wave enhanced emission photoacoustic streaming] procedure, which provides the most effective cleaning and disinfection. With surgical treatments, I use both wavelengths in almost all cases. Even when perform- ing an easy and fast tooth extraction, I can use Er:YAG for granulation tissue removal, followed by Nd:YAG for disin- fection, clot stabilisation and fi nally photo-biomodulation. Of course, I use laser before implant insertion, as well as when complications appear. In your opinion, what are the main benefi ts of choosing a laser system that includes two complementary wave- lengths, such as Er:YAG and Nd:YAG, especially in the fi eld of oral surgery? Very often, we combine these two wavelengths to conduct treatment in a fast, safe and predictable way. For me, it’s crucial to use these two complementary wavelengths— the interaction between the tissue and laser beam is quite different, and owing to these differences in absorption, transmission and scattering, we obtain different actions. For example, during root apicectomy, after fl ap elevation, I remove granulation soft tissue with the Er:YAG laser using the H14 handpiece with a cylindrical tip (or when I want to be more precise—a Varian tip) and the apicectomy is done with the H02 non-contact handpiece. As the next step, I conduct deep disinfection with the Nd:YAG laser (trans-