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Finishing and Polishing Dental Restorations
To the uninformed, the process of finishing and polishing dental restorations may seem purely cosmetic — even trivial. But clinicians know these steps are crucial to the restorative process. Finishing Dental Restorations No matter how well the color of a composite restoration matches the rest of a patient’s dentition, or… Read More
Dental Curing Lights: Dentistry’s Magic Wands
Dental curing lights come in handy for a range of dental applications, from direct restorations to whitening procedures. It’s hard to imagine modern dentistry without them. In fact, a recent industry report predicts that the global dental curing light market will be worth more than $197 million by 2022. Read More
How Dental Matrix Systems Improve Restorative Success
Compared to a slick, new chairside computer-aided design/computer-sided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) setup, dental matrix systems may seem pretty mundane. But truth be told, they really are the bread and butter of restorative dentistry. Good matrix systems provide a multitude of benefits. They separate one tooth from another, and contain composite material… Read More
Success in Tooth Whitening and Shade Matching
Teeth are pretty front-and-center when it comes to facial esthetics, but they can become discolored for a number of reasons. The usual suspects include things like tobacco, tea, coffee, red wine, fruit — basically anything that is high in tannins, acids or chromogens can cause stains or dull enamel to… Read More
Obturation Strategies for Root Canal Treatment
Once a tooth is compromised beyond the point that it can be directly restored, the next recommendation may be a root canal. With today’s emphasis on minimally invasive treatment, this option versus implant placement can make a lot of sense. Filling the Void Root canal treatment involves cavity preparation, shaping… Read More
Caries Detection Strategies
The incidence of caries remains a central oral health problem in the United States. Many in the dental community believe that prevention is the best medicine in the fight against caries, with early caries detection as a close second. Recent statistics show that approximately 18.6% of children age 5 to… Read More
Magnification in Dentistry
When you ask dental professionals what they see as the most important recent development in dentistry, many will tell you it’s magnification. After all, dentists can’t treat what they can’t see. Thanks to magnification in dentistry, we now know that disasters in waiting—from open margins to accessory root canals—were being… Read More
The Benefits of Composite Resin in Direct Dental Restorations
The advent of adhesive dentistry in the 1950s was a boon to the dental profession. The availability of composite resin formulations, often coupled with bonding agents, enables clinicians to place tooth-colored fillings, which by most esthetic standards, beat the heck out of silver fillings. In addition, their placement is less… Read More
CAD/CAM Technology Benefits
When it comes to designing and manufacturing dental prostheses and appliances in contemporary dentistry, it’s hard to beat computer-assisted design and computer-assisted manufacture (CAD/CAM). For dental practices, having this technology in-house can provide a boost to the bottom line, through increased efficiency and patient satisfaction. CAD/CAM systems are used in… Read More
Combining Hand Instruments with Ultrasonics for Winning Outcomes in Dental Hygiene
When oral biofilm is allowed to run roughshod over dental surfaces, it can spread subgingivally, triggering gingivitis and periodontal disease. To eradicate subgingival plaque and calculus, clinicians, typically dental hygienists, perform nonsurgical periodontal therapy (NSPT), usually in the form of scaling and root planing (SRP). Traditionally, the armamentarium for this… Read More