February 27, 2010
Also had an opportunity to drop by B&D’s suite. Must say it was quite busy. I was pleased to see a very nice promotional piece on their about-to-be-released Hybrid Zirconia Custom Abutments. If I understand it correctly, you will be able to use the 3Shape Abutment software to scan proprietary scan caps for a variety of different platforms including Biomet 3i, NobelActive, NobelReplace, Straumann Bone Level and AstraTech. Once scanned the software will automatically load an image of the corresponding titanium insert manufactured by Swiss-Medent. You then design the coronal portion of the abutment complex; mill it out of zirconia (shading possible), and cement the zirconia abutment head to the titanium insert using 3M’s RelyX Unicem.
It’s the same concept as a Lava abutment – one of the chief advantages of this type of abutment is that the forces occurring during the torquing of the seating screw are on the titanium insert, not the zirconia – but preliminary numbers show it will be much more cost effective.
BTW – during the Lava Users’ Meeting, they did announce that 3M will be releasing a 5.3 version of the Lava Design software which will enable you to do the same thing – for any platform for which you can purchase an insert. I think – don’t quote me – the main difference is that with the Lava iteration you would scan the insert on the model. I don’t believe its necessary to have scan caps. Check with your 3M rep to be certain.
I have to say, for a small company B&D is remarkably aggressive and responsive. If you’re in Chicago, you should stop by and check ‘em out.
February 26, 2010
Happened to pass by the Lava Users Group Meeting this afternoon. Here’s a few impressions -
- Not very well attended. I would put the head count at somewhere around 50. Chalk it up to the economy, or bad weather but there doesn’t seem to be the same number of people here this year that there has been in the past.
- Lava DVS may be worthy of a look-see. The premise of the restoration is that you can use the Lava Design software to model a full contour image of the restoration, and then the program will automatically split the files enabling the simultaneous production of an anatomical Lava coping (guaranteeing adequate ceramic support) and a milled, synthetic feldspathic “over pattern”. The coping would be shaded, and the DVS material would be milled out of one of four “enamel” shades. The two components are then “melded” via the use of a special Fusion ceramic (akin to a liner, and available in 10 shades). The whole complex is fired in a conventional porcelain oven, reportedly resulting in a restoration that is higher in fracture resistance than a conventionally layered crown, or e.Max CAD.
I’m not quite clear on the DVS vs. e.Max claim. The flexural strength of the DVS material is reported to be around 95 MPa. Ivoclar claims e.Max CAD’s number is 360 MPa – 3M stated that the number was actually closer to 215 MPa, but that’s still twice as strong as the DVS veneering material. 3M’s claim that the DVS has a higher resistance to fracture was based on 4-pt ball bearing test with the forces being directed vertically, so I get that the DVS material supported by the Lava coping would be stronger under those circumstances. I simply wonder if we would see the same results in lateral or protrusive movements.
I know – canine disclusion takes care of all that, right?
Now, for the other side of the story – Productivity. 3m threw up lots of testamonials from beta labs claiming significant increases in the productivity of ceramists producing DVS crowns vs. layering or pressing. The one stat that stuck out for me was it took said ceramists, on average, roughly 18 minutes less time to produce a DVS restoration. I’m not sure, but I don’t think that included the scanning and design of the restoration. 3M would not divulge the cost of the DVS blocks, but just for fun let’s say you would have to pay an ALMC $20 to mill the DVS overpattern. How many ceramists out there are making $60/hour?
Let’s say your ceramist makes $30/hour. If you saved 18 minutes ($9), but it cost you an additional $20 in materials….well, I’m not sure I get it.
That being said, I would like to do a little testing of my own, and I would like 3M to supply me with a DVS Trialnkit – at no charge.
Why?
At the end of their presentation they talked briefly about opening up the Lava mills to 3Shape and DentalWings scans. As part of that presentation, one slide showed the pricing for the various levels at which a lab can participate in scanning and COS. I noticed the COS margin marking software is now down to $2995. As one of the very first labs to get on board with COS, I paid $10,000. I advocated COS – strongly – on this blog, and directly with my client base (not to much avail, mind you). I feel a little…how shall I put it? UNDERCUT!!!
Yeah, sour grapes. Sue me.
So, in the words of Bill Murray in Caddyshack – “How about a little sumpin’, sumpin’? You know, for the effort?” I will take a DVS Trial Kit rather than Total Consciousness on my death bed…
February 26, 2010
We have received our scan caps, and are officially open for business to provide our clients with Custom Abutments (Titanium or Zirconia) designed on our 3Shape scanner and milled by Biomet 3i. For those of you using this system, this is great news. You can now prescribe a Biomet 3i Certain Custom Abutment and get all the advantages of a milled interface, plus save considerable amounts of cash over a cast abutment which entails the use of an expensive UCLA castable abutment and GOLD!
For more information, call me directly at 800.678.7354 M-Th 6am-5pm.
BTW – Daniel Jung of B&D Dental showed me one of their custom abutments – similar to a Lava abutment with a titanium interface and a milled zirconia abutment head that is cemented to the titanium. he didn’t give me a specific time table, but I don’t think we’re too far off… Will update with more info later.
February 26, 2010
Was chatting with Scott of Dominion Milling Center the other day, and he passed on some news he had heard from the powers that be at 3M. It seems 3M has finally recognized that they are significantly behind 3Shape’s design software, so they are apparently working on a way to allow those of us with Lava scanners to download Lava scans into 3Shape. Scott pointed out that through simple observation of file size and “counting triangles” he has determined that the average Lava scan has 4-5x as much data as a 3Shape scan. More data means higher accuracy, which can’t be bad, right?
My immediate thought is what does this do for 3M? If I use the Lava scanner, and then design the restoration in 3Shape and output that file to my Origin Pro 5000 mill, what does that do for 3M? Is there going to be some type of “lock” that prevents me from milling anything scanned on the Lava scanner on another mill? Or a dongle fee?
I’m pretty happy with the results I’m getting using the 3Shape scanner – I don’t see a clinically significant difference in the output of the Origin mill and what I receive from my Lava Milling Center – I’d call it a dead heat. Don’t know where this is headed, but hope to get some answers this weekend in Chicago.
BTW – the new AeroTrains are now operational at Dulles. Not sure what the big deal is – the train dropped us off a good 300 yards from the gates (a long enough walk that they installed a moving sidewalk). What’s up with that? If you’re going to build a train system, why not have it load/unload next to the gates?
(I used to like to travel – now I guess I’m just old. Bring back the days when I didn’t have to disrobe, nor worry about the size of my toothpaste tube…)
February 25, 2010
As promised, Daniel Jung of B&D Dental arrived at our laboratory yesterday for a day of installation and training our staff in the fine art of milling e.Max blue blocks using our Origin Pro 5000. We scanned and designed a single upper bicuspid using 3Shape, and then loaded the file into the milling software. Daniel has developed a neat, little jig that enables you to load up to eight blue blocks at once. Each restoration’s milling strategy is determined, and then you can batch the jobs to run consecutively. It took a little over 21 minutes to mill the bicuspid, so theoretically you could mill eight restorations in something under three hours. Okay, that’s a little slower than the Cerec InLab Mc XL, but…
THESE FIT!
I had to do a slight amount of internal adjustment – I think this was due to a combination of the geometry of the preparation and maybe I could have used a little more drill compensation – but the margins were completely closed. No little gaps that require relining like was so often the issue with the Cerec machine.
I filled the restoration with Ivoclar’s Object Fix and ran a Speed Crystallization. From start to finish – not counting model & die – the whole process took a little over an hour. I see real possibilities for situations when time is of the essence. In fact, we have a case coming up next week for an account who has a friend coming in to town for two days. We’re going to get the impression Tuesday morning, and the plan is for the crown to be seated late that afternoon.
I hope to photograph the process, and plan on posting the results. Check back Wednesday or Thursday.
Now, I’m headed to Chicago for the Mid-Winter meeting. There’s always something new and exciting – I’ll provide updates through out my trip….
