Perfecting the final step of damaged tooth restoration isn’t easy. You might face issues like sharp and uneven edges, which can lead to an unsatisfactory patient experience. Fortunately, high-end tools like dental grinding and polishing have revolutionized the procedures.
If you are a dental professional reading this, consider using high-quality grinding and polishing tools. These tools are designed to polish the surface and deliver optimal results effectively. In this article, you will learn how to use grinding and polishing burs, as well as the benefits, and the factors of using these high-quality tools with different types of polishing burs. Read on to learn more!
What is Dental Grinding and Polishing Bur?
Grinding and polishing tools are among the rotary instruments that smooth the post-operative tooth’s sharp and uneven edges. These tools help remove excess material post-treatment and prevent your tooth from plaque build-up.
By utilizing these tools, dentists can seamlessly create smooth and high-gloss surfaces on restorations like biocompatible fillings and zirconia crowns. It also helps prevent the risk of gum disease and decay.
Additionally, it helps remove stains or discoloration, mend sharp edges of restoration, and prepare the tooth for bonding. And also helps remove scratches from the surfaces and leaves behind natural-looking aesthetics and enhanced visual appearance of your tooth.
Types of Polishing Burs
There are different polishing burs available with unique properties, advantages, and applications. To achieve the ideal results, choosing the option that best suits your requirements is crucial. So, continue reading further!
1. Diamond Polishing Burs
Diamond polishing burs feature a high-grade diamond coating, renowned for their sharp precision and exceptional cutting performance. These grinding and polishing burs effortlessly handle procedures such as crown cutting and bone cutting with smooth precision.
2. Carbide Polishing Burs
Carbide burs are designed to deliver smoother surfaces, ideal for shaping bones, fillings, and treatments like root canals. Since it has high wear resistance, carbide burs are more long-lasting.
3. Silicone Polishers
Some of the most popular ones are silicone polishers, which are designed to deliver smooth surfaces and a glossy finish. These polishers are perfect for tooth restorations, which involve composite and ceramic materials.
4. Zirconia-Specific Grinding Burs
Zirconia burs have become quite popular lately due to their capability of delivering flawless finish with crowns and bridges. Since these burs are being developed with solid materials like diamond or carbide, it’s an appropriate choice for high speed and pieces.
5. Glass Ceramic Polishing Burs
If you are going for dental surgeries or other procedures (like cavity filling, splitting teeth, or cutting through bone), glass-ceramic burs are the appropriate choice. Designed with strong materials, these ceramic burs are quite efficient in cutting and shaping teeth.
6. Fine Abrasive Polishers
Fine abrasive polishers are designed for delicate procedures, remove minor scratches, and provide a shiny outlook. These dental grinding and polishing bur’s are so delicate, that they won’t damage the material of filling and still deliver a smooth surface to your recently treated tooth.
7. Coarse Grit Burs
These finishing and polishing burs are used to prepare the surface of the tooth structure for finer polishing stages. It’s designed to treat heavy material and shape & contour the surface in less period.
8. Ultra-Fine Polishers
Ultra-fine polishers are generally used in the last stage of the polishing procedure, it is used to provide a high-gloss finish while enhancing the aesthetics of restoration treatment and overall outlook.
9. Interproximal Polishers
If you are treating a tooth structure with tight spaces and gaps between teeth, interproximal polishers can be a go-to product. Without damaging the adjacent teeth, these polishers treat and deliver smooth interproximal surfaces.
10. Marginal Ridge Adjusting Burs
These burs are most compatible with treating marginal ridges and improving the alignment of your tooth structure. The marginal ridge adjusting burs ensure patients can comfortably resume their natural daily routines, such as biting or chewing.
Leading brands like Aidite have engineered their polishing burs for versatile usage, ensuring dental professionals can rely on their durability and consistent results. Designed to meet rigorous industry standards, these tools provide dentists with flawless results, aesthetic appeal, and precision with ease of application.
Before You Begin – Initial Preparation
Before you start with your procedures using dental grinding and polishing bur, ensure you have analyzed each bur type and picked the right one as per the severity of the tooth. Also, it’s essential to consider whether you are dealing with any specific type of material. Even selecting the right grit size and shape is equally important.
Another aspect to keep in mind is, setting the right speed on your rotary tool according to the recommended RPM for your specific bur and material. Else the improper speed can damage both your workpiece and tool.
How to Use Grinding and Polishing Bur?
When restoring teeth, finishing and polishing burs are considered essential tools, which enable the precision of the dentist of smoothening, shaping, and finishing the final step of restoration.
So, whether you are dealing with ceramics, composites, or metals, mastering the procedure of using burs is crucial for ideal results. To help you with this, we have compiled a brief guide on how to use Grinding and Polishing Bur. So, keep reading further!
Step 1. Opting For Appropriate Bur
While starting with the procedure, it is essential to analyze the critical condition of the tooth and choose your tools wisely.
- Ensure you opt for the most appropriate bur type according to the material you have been using like Zirconia or Glass Ceramic.
- Also, ensure the chosen grit is suitable with your handpiece for effective results.
Step 2. Initial Preparation
Next, it’s quite essential for a dentist to sterilize the tools and make sure the workstation has enough light exposure to deliver results with optimal precision. You can utilize a rubber dam to prevent debris from entering your patient’s mouth.
Step 3. Positioning of the Bur
Once you are done with the initial preparation, handle your handpiece with critical care and position the bur correctly to avoid unnecessary wobbling or detachment mid-treatment. Then try inserting the bur firmly into your handpiece. Once the tool is ready, adjust the speed according to the bur type and treatment to be performed.
Step 4. Grind Restored Tooth
When grinding a tooth, movement control and precision are key.
- Begin grinding by outlining the specific target area and plan your approach according to accuracy.
- The best tip is to apply gentle pressure to avoid overheating and damaging the material.
- Try to sand evenly with sweeping motions to get a perfect shape.
- You can repeat the process, but make sure you monitor the progress and don’t overdo it.
Step 5. Polishing the Tooth
After you have ground and obtained the ideal shapes and cuts, it is time to polish the cutter with the appropriate grit.
- Choose a medium grit at the beginning of the process and slowly and gradually progress to finer grits to achieve optimal results.
- Keep the pressure low when polishing and take frequent breaks in between to control the surface heat and avoid damaging the surrounding tissue.
Step 6. Final Inspection
Before completing the restoration of the tooth, check your work with magnifying tools and analyze the contour of the patient’s tooth.
- Before moving ahead also ensure the surface of the crown of teeth is personalized as per requirement.
- It has proper fit, athletics, and occultation that meets the visual and functional requirements of the patient.
3 Common Mistakes To Avoid When Using Grinding and Polishing Bur
Until now you must have understood the benefits of burs and how you can use them for optimal results, it’s time for you to explore some common mistakes to avoid during the procedure or usage. With in-depth research, we have come across some of the most common mistakes to avoid while learning how to use Grinding and Polishing Bur.
1. Excessive Pressure
Avoid applying excessive pressure, as this can lead to excessive heat build-up in the material, which can cause damage to the restoration or the area around the tooth being treated. Instead, try to approach with gentle pressure and allow the bur to achieve optimal results.
2. Wrong Technique
Another mistake most beginners make is using the drill very irregularly. Incorrect treatment can lead to uneven surfaces or an unsightly appearance. Therefore, dentists need to master the technique of using drills, keeping the movement stable, and maintaining an even angle along with the pressure during polishing.
3. Using A Damaged Drill
If you continue to use worn, damaged, and blunt drills, you directly compromise their effectiveness, which can lead to unsatisfactory results. Therefore, dentists must check their drills regularly and replace them with new tools when necessary.
How to Use Grinding and Polishing Bur FAQs
1. What is a dental grinding and polishing bur used for?
It smoothes sharp edges, removes excess material, and polishes restorations for a natural appearance and better durability.
2. How do I choose the right polishing bur?
Analyze the tooth’s condition, material type, and treatment needs. Select an appropriate grit size and shape for effective results.
3. What is the correct speed for using polishing burs?
Adjust the rotary tool’s RPM as recommended for the specific bur type and material to avoid damage.
4. Why is regular maintenance of dental tools important?
Regular maintenance ensures the tools retain their effectiveness, prevent cross-contamination, remove debris buildup, and maintain sharpness for optimal performance and patient safety.
Summary
Achieving optimal dental care demands both efficacy and precision. Thus, mastering the technique of dental Grinding and Polishing Bur are extremely important to achieve these goals.
To facilitate this, brands like Aidite have developed comprehensive grinding and polishing toolkits. These kits encompass a diverse range of tools in various shapes and sizes, enabling practitioners to achieve optimal results in various dental procedures.
By utilizing high-quality burs and effectively implementing the techniques discussed in this article, dentists can significantly enhance their practice and deliver an exceptional experience to patients.