Waterpik® ClearView Sectional Matrix Facilitates Clinically Superior Class IIs
Numerous advances have converged to lead to greater success with composite resin restorations, George Freedman, DDS, acknowledges. “Improved resin restorative materials, predictable adhesives, effective polymerizing lights, and clinically practical matrix systems have all contributed to the current state where tooth-colored restorations have all but replaced amalgam fillings in mainstream dentistry,” claims the Toronto, Canada practitioner, who is a founder of both the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry and the Canadian Academy for Esthetic Dentistry.
The process of establishing the tight interproximal contacts needed for Class II restorations is challenging, Freedman admits. “Placing a matrix band around a tooth, tightening it appropriately, inserting the wedges, and then positioning the whole assembly so that it is suitable for insertion of the restorative material can be uncomfortable for the patient and clinically challenging for the dentist,” he says. “Developing a well-formed contact using a circumferential matrix system has been more problematic with composite restorative materials than with amalgams.”
Freedman says the Waterpik® ClearView Sectional Matrix System he now uses in his practice has solved these issues and simplified his operative dentistry. “For resin materials, ClearView sectional matrices offer far better marginal adaptation than circumferential types. Their preformed, 3-dimensional shapes create naturally contoured restorative surfaces that require a minimum of reshaping or finishing. Furthermore, the ClearView universal interproximal retaining rings make the slight but significant separation of adjacent teeth comfortable for even the unanesthetized patient,” he says. This, he concludes, “makes for predictable interdental contacts.”
Further, Freedman adds, “Anatomically shaped Waterpik wedges conform to the contours of the gingival margins, keeping papillae out of the way, and allowing the interproximal contact points to be formed in their correct anatomical positions.”
The product kit, Freedman says, includes all of the necessary components, which are designed to work together sequentially. The autoclavable ClearView rings can be positioned either mesially or distally to give the practitioner better visibility and access, and, he points out, they can be “stacked” to simultaneously restore MODs or multiple cavities in the same quadrant. The different sized wedges, he adds, are ideal for handling various scenarios. “The four sizes of wedges can be used for virtually every situation, inserted through the ‘wedge tunnel’ from either the buccal or the lingual. Multiple wedges can also be used simultaneously for larger interproximal spaces.”
The matrices themselves, he explains, are available in three distinct sizes: bicuspid, small molar, and regular molar. Additional bicuspid and molar matrices have gingival extensions, which he says are particularly useful for extensive, more apical decay. ClearView forceps, also included in the kit, atraumatically position (and remove) retainer rings on the pre-positioned matrices.
Freedman says he was able to easily scale the learning curve involved in incorporating the ClearView Sectional Matrix System into his practice. “None of the steps is new to the dental practitioner,” he asserts. “I found the system quite intuitive, even without referring to instructions, which are very comprehensive—both in the kit and online.”
He considers positioning of the sectional matrix to be clinically easier than that of circumferential methods. “The Waterpik wedges are introduced into the interdental space in traditional fashion. The Waterpik ClearView retaining ring is seated securely over the matrix and wedge(s). Additional wedges can be inserted as needed,” he explains. “The secured matrix is contoured into contact with the adjacent tooth, and the restoration process is ready to proceed.”
“The innovative ClearView Sectional Matrix technique simply facilitates clinically superior Class II composite restorations and develops the elusive interproximal contacts each and every time,” Freedman concludes. “ClearView is better, faster, easier, and more predictable.”
Water Pik, Inc.
1730 East Prospect Rd
Fort Collins, CO 80553
800-525-2020
waterpik.com
