Dental polishers
Dental Polishers
In dentistry and dental technology very different materials require smoothing and polishing. This ranges from exceptionally hard natural tooth enamel to the surfaces of filling materials (composites, compomers or amalgam), fixed restorations (metal alloys or ceramics), implant components (titanium, other metals or zirconia), appliances, splints or dentures (all types of hard and soft materials).
The dental polishers used in standard handpieces are rotary instruments with a metal or plastic shank. The smoothing and polishing section of the instrument is attached to the shank – whether rigidly connected or via press-on, clamp or screw connection (e.g. with mandrels). Some polishers are not active themselves and require the additional use of polishing pastes as consumable materials (in particular for prophylaxis).
Easy, clean results are produced with all other polishers. In this case the working section is made of rubber or silicone. Abrasive materials (e.g., silicon carbide or corundum and mainly diamonds are used for very hard materials, in particular ceramics) of a suitable, selected grit size are embedded in the surface or impregnate the entire working section.
A wide range of polisher shapes is available for different applications. Typical shapes are points, cups and discs for the dental practice and wheels, cylinders/arbor bands and torpedoes for the dental laboratory.
A dental polisher
Surfaces of materials are smoothed and polished in one or more working stages. Technically, the individual processing stages vary either in the different pressure applied and/or motor speed but mainly by using abrasives/polishers with different degrees of hardness and grit sizes (specific for each stage). Polishing techniques often differentiate between two-step pre-polishing (coarse polish) and high-lustre polishing (fine polish), depending on the material, initial condition, required final state and up to three steps. The first/coarsest step is frequently a transition from preparing/contouring; at this stage significant (macroscopic) amounts of material are still removed. In the subsequent steps the main focus of the work is more on reducing (increasingly microscopic) surface irregularities (surface roughness). The final step produces a smooth surface, in general with a silky sheen or high-lustre/shining finish. Often the different colours of the polishers facilitate the assignment of specific instruments to the respective working stages. All diamond grit polishers have uniformly standardised coloured rings for identifying the different fineness of each polishing step.
To rule out cross contamination between patients in clinical dental medical applications, preference should be given to polishers, which are either suitable for sterilisation in an autoclave to ensure safe multiple use or which are designed as single-use products from the outset (use for one single patient only).
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Word of the day
| English | German |
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| low viscosity material | Korrekturmasse, Injektionsmaterial, Korrekturmaterial, Spritzenmaterial |
Focus text of the month
Endodontics Endodontologists are… Endodontics Endodontologists are dentists specialised in endodontics. Endodontics is a section of conservative dentistry and therefore always supports tooth conservation. This includes (direct) pulp capping of exposed pulp area, apicectomies but mainly root canal treatment. Endodontic treatment is indicated with irreversible pulpitis, destruction of the pulp due to accidents or infection as well as persistent or re-occurring bacterial colonisation of root canals that have already been treated or filled (revision).
The initial aim (practical) is the complete elimination of diseased tissue, foreign material (e.g. existing root canal filler material) and pathogens from the root canal system. The chemical methods include antibacterial and/or tissue-dissolving solutions (e.g. chlorhexidine, EDTA, sodium hypochlorite, hydrogen peroxide). Machine or manually operated steel or nickel titanium root canal instruments are used for mechanical preparation, i.e. excavation, smoothing, cleaning and extension of the (main) root canals. Both methods in combination form chemomechanical preparation. Medical temporary fillings (e.g. with calcium hydroxide or chlorophenol camphor menthol) can be used for further reduction of bacteria. Finally, the prepared main root canals are obturated, i.e. using a root canal filling (e.g. consisting of gutta percha posts and root canal cement) filled, sealed and covered using an adhesive filling and/or a crown.
In the final outcome the treated tooth should heal long term without any discomfort/symptoms and there should be no pathological changes of the apical alveolar bone (detectable on the X-ray). The probability of success of endodontic treatment has greatly increased in the past two decades, particularly due to the increased use of operating microscopes and microsurgical techniques and is generally given as 90%. In addition, successes have been achieved in the coverage (including iatrogenic) of perforations or the removal of fractured instruments or cemented posts from the root canal system.
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Access to the pulp chamber
Filled root canals 25, 26, 27
Master point - The first guttapercha point