Dental materials

At Exquisite Dental Tech, we owe it to our dentist clients to stay up to date on the latest materials used in restorations. Some are available now, some are just hitting the market, and some are a few years from reaching your patients’ mouths. One, which is so new it doesn’t have a name yet, is being developed by Materials Scientists at the University of California at Santa Barbara. It takes advantage of mechanisms that have evolved over millions of years to help mussels stick to alternately wet and dry surfaces, which of course is something that dentures and implants must do. In practice it means that researchers are creating a newer, more durable composite that lends and additional layer of protection to treated teeth. This could mean longer lasting fillings, implants, and crowns. Says Dr. Kolbe Ahn of UCSB’s Marine Science Institute, “It’s as hard as a typical dental restoration but less likely to crack.” His research is mentioned in the latest edition of the journal Advanced Materials. Often today’s dental restorations often don’t last more than 10 years in a patient’s mouth before requiring replacement. Though patients are urged not to engage in activities like bruxing, [...]