An Essential Tool for Emergency Dentistry

James Cope, DDS, on Sunstar’s GUIDOR® easy-graft® CLASSIC

Thirty years ago, I began a family dental practice in El Dorado Hills, California, and have been working in partnership with my son, Benjamin Cope, DDS, and my wife, Kimberly Cope, RN, on cases of dental rehabilitation with operative, prosthetic, periodontic, endodontic, and surgical/restorative implant solutions. COVID-19 has profoundly affected the dental profession, and with patients only being appointed for emergencies, I am performing proportionately more extractions. GUIDOR^® easy-graft^® CLASSIC is an extremely important material for me to have right now because it is superior to other grafting products in its ability to be easily placed and help patients heal quickly and uneventfully after an extraction. It provides a quick, easy way to obturate bony defects. Patients are less likely to need sutures or to experience pain, bleeding problems, or dry socket; therefore, a follow-up visit is not usually needed, which helps us to stay at home during this time.

1. An easy-to-handle material, GUIDOR easy-graft CLASSIC is syringed directly into the defect. 2. After contact with body fluids, the material can be shaped and contoured as it hardens into a stable, porous scaffold in approximately 1 minute. 3. GUIDOR easy-graft CLASSIC is ideal for ridge preservation and filling voids around immediately placed implants.

What is the best feature?
Ease of use. To fit the surgical need, it can be formed to exactly support and cover, which is more difficult with calcium sulfate grafts.

Do you find it reliable?
I have used GUIDOR easy-graft CLASSIC hundreds of times and have yet to experience a failure, including alveolitis and oroantral fistula.

When else do you use it?
To regenerate bone over fenestration defects at the time of implant placement and to manage bleeding for patients on anticoagulants.