“The increase in inherent strength of the material is very appealing. This material can be prepped down to 0.6 mm which is appealing. Shade comparison is very close to the VITA guide and looks quite nice next to opaque teeth and older PFM crowns.”
“Very strong and durable material. In posterior locations where esthetics are less important, this block worked beautifully.”
“Takes longer to fire. Also, you have to remember to designate the shade in the CEREC software.”
“I love the 0.6 mm of reduction, the margins are absolutely amazing, and the mill time is great too.”
Description
CEREC MTL Zirconia Blocks are partially sintered zirconia blocks that are then milled and fully sintered to give flexural strengths over 850 MPa. They are available in 11 shades in both mono and medi blocks.
Unique Attributes
Ability to prep to 0.6 mm as opposed to the traditional 1.0-1.5 mm, up to 40% lower reduction of the tooth.
Specific firing for different shades.
Faster milling time if using the Super-Fast Milling setting – around 5 minutes.
Multi-transitional layering of the material assists in a greater esthetic outcome.
Clinical Tips
Make sure to have enough occlusal reduction if you want to carve in more occlusal table anatomy. Post-milling finishing is required.
Posterior crowns are the proper location unless function is more of a concern than esthetics.
Polishing technique: use a light touch. Be certain to polish over areas that are adjusted to reduce the abrasive nature of the material.
“The fully-crystallized material works beautifully and saves time.”
“Time! These blocks save me an incredible amount of time because they do not require time in the oven.”
“I treat mostly geriatric adults. Having the time savings is of more interest to the patient than perfectly matching or blending the restoration. They are also by and large not breaking their old PFMs, which means they probably don’t need full strength ceramic, and these LiSi will be a middle ground of strength.”
“Less margin chipping, better marginal accuracy definitely noticeable after milling, much better marginal adaptation in my opinion.”
“Add more shade options.”
Description
GC Initial LiSi Blocks are fully crystallized lithium disilicate that offers optimal physical properties without the need for firing. Created with the GC HDM technology, these blocks deliver high wear resistance, smooth margins, and esthetic results while saving chair time. Due to the fully-crystallized nature of the blocks, there is a reduction in marginal gap size usually found after firing conventional lithium disilicate.
Unique Attributes
Includes High-Density Micronization (HDM) technology for high wear resistance and smooth margins
No sintering or firing required to save up to 40% of usual chair time
Smaller marginal gap size as crystalization occurs prior to fabrication
Available in both a High-Translucency and a Low-Translucency block
Clinical Tips
Develop a good polishing protocol to get a good finish as you are not staining and using a furnace.
It takes a little bit more time to mill, but the time savings from not having to put it in the oven is huge!
LT matches well to existing crowns, HT better for adjacent teeth
Give proper thickness to prevent chipping; especially at the margins
RelyX Universal Resin Cement is a dual-cured universal cement with an innovative syringe design
It can be used in either the adhesive or self-adhesive mode for cementation.
Kit contains Scotchbond Universal Plus Adhesive for adhesive cementation
Available in shades A1, WO, A3O, and TR, which coordinate with the 3M™ RelyX™ Try-In Pastes
Innovative syringe and tip design to minimize waste
Excellent bond strength performance in DENTAL ADVISOR Biomaterials Lab testing
Clinical Evaluation Protocol
During a 24-month period, 636 restorations were cemented with RelyX Universal Resin Cement, in both adhesive- and self-adhesive mode. 452 restorations were one- to two- years old and availble for recall. For restorations requiring a bonding agent, Scotchbond Universal Adhesive Plus was used. The restorations included mostly crowns (anterior and posterior) and veneers, followed by implant crowns, bridges, and a few fiber posts (Figure 1). The vast majority were silica-based ceramic (lithium disilicate) and zirconia restorations (Figure 2).
Clinical Observations
Retention: Retention was excellent (Figure 4). All restorations remained intact, with no debonds occcuring over the two-year period.
Color Stability: Color stability rated excellent as well (Figure 4). Initial shades remained stable and restorations looked very natural. No shade shift or greying of restorations over time were reported.
Resistance to Marginal Staining: Resistance to marginal staining rated excellent (Figure 4). All restorations were observed to have smooth margins with no visible stain, indicating no marginal leakage at the tooth/restorative interface.
Evaluators’ Comments
“The new syringe and tip are a wonderful combination! The tip design significantly reduces waste; syringe is small and comfortable in hand, and a window shows amount of material left in syringe.
“This dispensing system is designed perfectly. It dispenses quickly, without bubbles and is extremely efficient.”
“Easy to use, easy to tack cure, easy to remove excess, and multiple modes available-all excellent!”
“It’s genius to combine two of my favorite cements, RelyX Unicem and RelyX Ultimate. Now I have one kit that does everything!”
Summary
A total of 636 restorations were placed over the past two years, using RelyX Universal Resin Cement and Scotchbond Universal Plus Adhesive as the bonding system for adhesive cases. 452 restorations were one- to two-years old and available for recall. All restorations received excellent ratings for retention, color stability and resistance to marginal staining. None of the restorations debonded over the two-year period. RelyX Universal Resin Cement received a 100% clinical perfomance rating at two years.
“The final restoration was very accurate and looked exactly like the mockup.”
“Having that initial shape is wonderful. It looks like it would be hard to trim after you open the doors, but it trims very quickly.”
“3M Filtek Matrix reduced my chairside time into less than half and gave amazing veneer like results in a very conservative way. “
“The final contours and esthetics of the composite veneers was great. My patient and I were both very pleased with the result.”
“I was pleasantly surprised at how there was not much excess composite interproximally.”
“This could be extremely helpful to clinicians who do not feel comfortable freehanding composite veneers.”
“The actual matrix was brittle and difficult to remove.”
“The lingual piece of the matrix was challenging to place.”
Description
3M Filtek Matrixis a unique customized anterior matrix system that is designed for predictability, efficiency and conservative dentistry. The digitally produced matrix fits your patient and allows for direct placement, creating easy to place anterior composite restorations.
Unique Attributes
Additive manufacturing allows for minimally invasive dentistry as opposed to ceramic restorations.
Large windows in the matrix allow for the use of universal composites and help the user view the fill level.
Doors on the matrix compress the composite and shape the facial contour. The doors also have engineered vents that allow for easy removal of excess.
Precise gingival trim allows the user to remove flash prior to curing.
Clinical Tips
Place and cure 3M Filtek Supreme Flowable Restorative at the gingival margin to help minimize the potential for voids.
Be sure to watch the instruction video – the process is extremely easy.
Avoid excessively overfilling the matrix as it may lead to more difficult removal after light curing.
Great for large case composite veneers and ideal if freehand veneers are new to you.
Use digital impressions to avoid the need to ship impressions and eliminate the time required for digitization.
Try a few cases; I suspect the process gets easier and easier.
Amber Mill is the first machinable dental glass-ceramic blocks made of lithium disilicate. Its reinforced mechanical properties and aesthetic values with qualified machinability are greatly advantageous for patients and clinics. Denser and more crosslinked crystal structure of Amber Mill results in superior physical properties. Biaxial flexure strength of Amber Mill is about 10% higher than comparative product after it is fully crystallized. Outstanding machinability of Amber® Mill is evidently affirmative when checking the edges of the milled restorations. Highly stable edges with less chipping occurrence prove that Amber Mill is the best machinable lithium disilicate block for CAD/CAM system.
