Consultants’ Comments

• “The esthetics are excellent – most times it is hard to tell the filling from the tooth.”
• “Nice composite, holds up very well.”

Description

3M ESPE Filtek LS Low Shrink Posterior Restorative System is based on silorane chemistry that minimizes polymerization shrinkage and stress. It is light cured and radiopaque with 76% by weight (55% by volume) of inorganic fillers and has its own proprietary LS System Adhesive Self-Etch Primer and Bond that are also light cured. The composite is dispensed from syringes or unit-dose capsules in A2, A3, B2 and C2 shades. This composite received a 97% clinical rating.

Clinical Evaluation Protocol

• 149 restorations qualified for a 2-year recall; 125 of these in 104 patients were recalled over a 6-month period.
• The recalled restorations represented 1-,2-, 3- and 4-surface composites (Figure 1).
• At recall the restorations were evaluated in the following areas: fracture/chipping, esthetics, marginal discoloration, wear resistance, and sensitivity. Each area was rated on a 1-5 scale: 1=poor, 2=fair, 3=good, 4=very good, 5=excellent.

Results of Recall

Fracture and Chipping
Ninety-seven percent of Filtek LS restorations were intact during the two years in service (Figure 2). Only four out of the 125 recalled restorations exhibited slight chipping and none required replacement.

Esthetics
The vast majority (94%) of the restorations received an excellent rating (Figure 2). Even though the shade selection was limited at placement, the available shades fulfilled most needs for posterior restorations. The shades seemed to blend even better with the surrounding tooth structure over time and at two years exhibited more smoothness and gloss.

Marginal Discoloration
Filtek LS restorations were bonded with its proprietary self-etch bonding agent. Ninety-five percent of the restorations had no visible staining at the margins (Figure 2). Four percent had very light stains at the margin, while only 1% had more moderate stains.

Wear Resistance
No visible signs of wear were seen on 98% of the recalled restorations (Figure 2). Likewise no apparent wear was noted on the opposing dentition.

Sensitivity
None of the recalled patients reported any sensitivity to cold or hot temperatures (Figure 2).

Summary

Filtek LS is a posterior composite based on silorane chemistry that minimizes polymerization shrinkage and stress. One hundred and twenty-five restorations were recalled at two years. In all monitored categories including lack of chipping, esthetics, wear resistance, resistance to marginal discoloration, and lack of sensitivity, the composite performed extremely well and is recommended for use in any posterior restoration.