Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
by Dr Matt Hedge, Helix Dental, Mermaid Waters, QLD
This is a set of polishers that comes in a variety of shapes and grades. I use them for all my composite restorations, both posterior and anterior. They’re particularly helpful for aesthetic composite restorations, composite resin veneers, and composite resin bonding and fillings in the front tooth region.
What’s good about it
They’re a very versatile set of polishers that provide a nice finish and glossy shine. Each different grade of polisher is colour coded which makes them simple to use.
After rough shaping, I’ll use the green polisher that is coarser and allows for a little more shaping. There’s a range of shapes to suit the surface whether it’s a posterior back tooth or a veneer at the front. The yellow polishers have a medium coarseness and the white are fine. There is also a gold tip point that incorporates silicon particles and leaves a nice finish.
Each polisher is pretty hard-wearing but their life depends on how often you use them and the speed at which they are run. The softer ones tend to wear down faster but there’s plenty of use in them. As they wear down, individual polisher replacements can be ordered to keep the kit complete.
For simple polishing jobs on posterior fillings, I’ll use a one-step polisher. For larger jobs that require more polishing and shaping, I’ll immediately reach for the Jiffys.
What’s not so good
Some dentists might prefer single, one-step polishers for all their jobs. I find that if you want to get the best possible polish, you need to work through each of the different levels.
