Dentaltown September 2021 - 22

show your work
case study
Warm Up to
Dr. Ron Kaminer, a 1990
graduate from SUNY Buffalo
School of Dental Medicine,
maintains practices in Hewlett
and Oceanside, New York. He is
director of the Masters of Laser
training program in New York
and a clinical instructor with the
International College of Laser
Education. Kaminer has lectured
internationally about dental lasers and minimally invasive
dentistry for several companies, including GC America,
AMD Lasers, SDI, Camsight, NuCalm and Smile Reminder.
Kaminer, who maintains a teaching appointment at
Peninsula General Hospital in Far Rockaway, New York, is a
member of the Academy of Laser Dentistry, the Academy
of General Dentistry, the International Academy of Facial
Aesthetics and the American Dental Association. He lives in
Hewlett, New York, with his wife, Jackie, and three children.
Something New
W
by Dr. Ron Kaminer
A novel approach to posterior restorative dentistry
hen we talk about any restorative material, how it handles is one of the
main attributes that attracts or repels a dentist. Many dentists prefer fi rm
composites that can be compressed into the preparation, while others like
creamier ones that handle more smoothly.
Over the years, in the interest of searching for that perfect handling, many dentists
have tried to alter a material's consistency by heating it in a water bath or composite
heater. An ideal heated composite would initially handle like a fl owable-fi lling every
little nook and cranny in the preparation-and, upon returning to its initial state at
body temperature, become condensable for a tight contact and an optimal fi ll.
Heating composites makes sense-and not only for the physical benefi ts that may
be achieved, such as softening the material to an optimal consistency. Composites
contain monomers and preheating the material can increase the monomers' degree of
conversion. Some studies have shown that increasing composite temperature allows
for reduced light exposure and lower polymerization stress (both maximum and fi nal)
while maintaining or increasing the monomers' degree of conversion.1
Other studies
have shown that even if you reduce the light exposure by 50-75%, you achieve the
same or better degree of conversion of those monomers.2
Some composites, when heated and then allowed to cool off, seem to have a different
consistency from their original state; I've noticed a fi rmer feel and chalky appearance
numerous times with a variety of materials.
The following case study outlines the use of a new material that's been developed
specifi cally to be heated for ease of placement in a bulk fashion, with a quick recovery
for ideal compression. VisCalor Bulk thermoviscous nanohybrid composite (Voco)
is indicated for Class 1, Class 2 and Class 5 restorations. It can also be used as a base
if a doctor prefers another composite on the occlusal surface. VisCalor Bulk has a
4 mm depth of cure, is highly fi lled and has extremely low shrinkage (< 1.4%). This
material can be heated via a customized traditional heater or a new delivery gun that
heats the composite before dispensing.
22 SEPTEMBER 2021 // dentaltown.com
http://www.dentaltown.com
Dentaltown September 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Dentaltown September 2021
