Laurence is a copywriter and trained journalist. His passion is creating insightful and educational content for dental professionals of every level. Outside of work, he enjoys watching sport, quizzing and spending time with his family.
Trusted all over the world for more than 50 years, 3M dental composites have been used for over 1 billion dental restorations.*
System like Filtek have become the composite of choice for thousands of dentists thanks to the number of advantages it brings to the table, most notably convenience.
Similarly, when it comes to impressions, 3M’s award-winning range of a-silicone and polyether products have won several prestigious industry awards, including Imprint 4 VPS which has received the Dental Advisor’s Top Award for VPS Impression Material multiple years in a row.
To add gloss and shine to new smile makeovers, 3M Sof-Lex finishing and polishing discs are designed to be time-saving and easy to use.
Impression Materials
Impressioning is key to getting an accurate fitting restoration and the overall aesthetics of the final prosthesis. A silicone, or VPS, is widely regarded as the best impression material due to the advantages it holds over alternative materials. These include:
- Most dimensionally stable impression material
- Best fine detail
- Most time to pour
- High patient acceptance
One of the downsides of a-silicone is that it is naturally hydrophobic, so excellent moisture control is required to prevent bubbles or holes forming.
Composites
With over 400 million dental restorations globally, Filtek Supreme XTE Universal Restorative is a dental composite that ticks A LOT of boxes.
Able to provide beauty for anterior restorations and strength for posterior ones, Filtek Supreme XTE is highly versatile and indicated for restoration classes I-V.
Finishing and Polishing
Be it a Filtek Supreme XTE direct restoration or an Imprint 4 VPS-inspired indirect restoration, finishing and polishing is key to achieving a high gloss look similar to natural teeth.
To help you create a beautiful finish without spending a great deal of time, 3M has developed an easy-to-use, colour-coded system for the adjustment of composite, compomer, metal and ceramic restorations.
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