Protecting the Pulp With Less Sensitivity

James Chae, DDS, on TheraCal LC®

I graduated from the University of California San Francisco School of Dentistry in 2000 and immediately went into private practice as an associate. Currently, I own Diamond Bar Dental Group in Diamond Bar, California, where I provide cosmetic and general dentistry. In addition to practicing, I also teach clinical dentistry as an adjunct instructor at the University of Southern California's Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry.

When I was an associate, I was seeing so many patients in a day that my focus had to be on efficiency. That's great for profitability, but when I started my own practice, I didn't just want to be profitable-my vision was to deliver excellent esthetic dentistry to my patients with integrity, dedication, and honesty. At my office, I use an intraoral camera to take photographs of each step of restorative treatments. Patients never leave without seeing before-and-after images of their procedures. This makes us accountable and helps develop trust with patients. If you are truly doing a great job, you should be showing it to your patients, and having images of your work to post online can help you to acquire new ones.

Using high quality dental materials is critical to providing excellent dentistry. After graduating from dental school, I used a glass ionomer for deep cavity surfaces and an opaquer to mask any dark amalgam stains However, after seeing ads for BISCO's TheraCal LC^® in dental magazines, I thought it might be a good product to try out.

I have been using TheraCal LC for almost 5 years now. TheraCal LC consists of tri-calcium silicate particles in a hydrophilic monomer that provides significant calcium release,* making it uniquely stable and durable as a liner or pulp capping material. It comes in a syringe with no mixing needed, so it is very easy to use. TheraCal LC can be applied to deep cavity preparations as well as to the exposed pulp. It should be applied to visibly moist dentin in 1-mm increments, and each increment should be light-cured for 20 seconds. Another benefit of the material is that it is compatible with any bonding technique, so it can be placed under cements and other restorative materials.

TheraCal LC has been an indispensable material in my practice. It really saves me time and money. Patients rarely experience postoperative sensitivity after restorations, and they are always happy to see their before-and-after photos. Since I started using TheraCal LC, I have never gone back to using other liners, which often have to be mixed or are more difficult to place on deep cavity surfaces, and I am always recommending it to other dentists on my social media pages where I share my work.

Key Takeaways

1. Calcium release stimulates hydroxyapatite formation*^1,2

2. Compatible with any bonding technique

3. Radiopaque to allow for easy detection on x-ray images

4. Light-curable, with flowable-like handling

1. ADA. Glossary of dental clinical and administrative terms. ADA website. https://www.ada.org/en/publications/cdt/glossary-of-dental-clinical-and-administrative-terms. Accessed September 2, 2021.

2. Gandolfi MG, Siboni F, Taddei P, et al. Apatite-forming Ability of TheraCal Pulp-Capping Material. J Dent Res 90(Spec Issue A):abstract number 2520, 2011 (www.dentalresearch.org).

*BISCO has, on file, the calcium release data for TheraCal LC.

James Chae, DDS
Adjunct Instructor
Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California
Diamond Bar Dental Group
Diamond Bar, California

Manufacturer Information
Bisco Dental Products
bisco.com/theracal-lc-/
800-247-3368