The Message in a Bottle Mailbag is a monthly feature of the e-newsletter, Pearls for Your Practice: The Product Navigator. Each month, Editorial Director Joshua Austin, DDS, FAGD, answers reader-submitted questions to help you navigate your dental product decisions (and more!). This month, he answers a question about the Mouth-Mate wound-protecting device, responds to a reader's tip about bonding to zirconia, and shares which summer movies he's excited about seeing.
Question
Jim D. wrote: I just read the Mouth-Mate Pearl in Dental Economics. I am not quite sure I understand what it's for. What advantage would this really give?
Answer
Fair question, Jim. I think part of the advantage is a placebo effect for the patient. Often, patients are terrified of causing themselves pain or creating problems at a surgical or extraction site. If a Mouth-Mate gives them peace of mind, I think it's a good thing. We want patients to keep up with good home care after surgical procedures, and for some patients, a Mouth-Mate device might help.
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Comment
Mark L. wrote: I have found that Kuraray Clearfil Universal Bond Quick adhesive works well with zirconia. I tried this because occasionally, I overadjust a proximal contact and need to repair it. As an experiment, I bonded a 3 mm–wide nub of composite to the outside of a zirconia crown and attempted to break it off. I could not break it off or even pry it off with an instrument. We had to literally drill every last bit off the crown, so that product definitely bonds well to zirconia. It is a single-bottle adhesive that can be used without a primer. Kuraray also makes a self-cure additive that can be mixed with the adhesive for use without light curing in indirect situations.
Reply
Wow, Mark! Thanks for that tip. That is impressive. Bonding to e.max and traditional ceramics has always been pretty easy. Zirconia has almost been a no-go, though. I have noticed that Invisalign will not put a button on a tooth with a zirconia crown. It treats it just like a full gold crown—impossible to bond to. So I am encouraged to hear about results like this with an easy-to-use product.
Kuraray makes some darn fine bonding materials. It is a world-class bonding company. I will have to give your suggestion a try. This could be a good stop-gap measure for situations like the one you described: needing to close a contact on an already-placed crown. This could also be good for teeth with zirconia crowns that could use an Invisalign button, which we will see more of now that translucent “anterior” zirconia is on the market.
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Miranda asked: I’ve been to one of your lectures, so I know you’re a movie fan. Are there any summer movies you are excited about?
Answer
Thanks for asking, Miranda! The summer movie season seems to be starting earlier and earlier every year. It seems like the biggest summer movie of the year came out before school let out: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. That seems weird to me, but Marvel tends to try to own May and has succeeded for the past few years. Beyond that, The Mummy with Tom Cruise looks good. I am sure we will see a bevy of Facebook posts about Tom Cruise’s midline from our dentist colleagues when that movie hits. That happens every time a Cruise movie comes out. Other than those, I am super jazzed about War for the Planet of the Apes! I love Apes movies, and this trilogy has been great so far. I am hoping that this is as good as the last one. Otherwise, I'm not very excited about this summer’s movies. We’ve already had big thuds with Baywatch, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, and Alien: Covenant. Let’s hope something sneaks in and surprises everyone to make the summer!
Editor's note: Do you have a question for Dr. Austin? Is there a product you'd like to see him review? Or would you like to submit your own Pearl? Send an e-mail to [email protected]. You might just see it in the e-newsletter, Pearls for Your Practice: The Product Navigator! If you're not a Product Navigator subscriber, click here to sign up.
More reading
May 2017 | Can curing light exposure cause vision problems?
April 2017 | Expanded-field loupes, oral cancer screening recommendations, NCAA
March 2017 | High caries risk and gluten-free diets
Joshua Austin, DDS, FAGD, is an editorial director for Pearls for Your Practice: The Product Navigator, an e-newsletter from DentistryIQ and Dental Economics. He also writes the Pearls for Your Practice column in Dental Economics. After graduating from the University of Texas Health Science Center Dental School, Dr. Austin associated for several years. In October 2009, he opened a solo general practice in a suburban area of San Antonio, Texas. Dr. Austin is involved in all levels of organized dentistry and can be reached at [email protected].
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