2024 is shaping up to be a transformative year! Over the past several months, we’ve worked to streamline our layout and make our lab more of an efficient workspace. Much of our old workspace has been re-dedicated to digital design. We’ve also brought a warmer feel to our space by replacing old countertops and creating a kitchenette space for our team to fix their lunches or grab a cup of coffee.
Dentistry is a fast-changing field, and we’re dedicated to staying at the forefront of that change. It is in that spirit that we’d like to introduce you to one of Ivoclar’s most popular new products—E.Max Prime and Prime Esthetic zirconia.
As you know, full contour zirconia’s greatest drawback is a lack of true translucency compared to natural dentition. However, with E.Max Prime and Prime Esthetic, Ivoclar has managed to produce a functional zirconia that offers strength in stress areas and life-like translucency in the incisal region.
They achieved this by combining zirconia powders stabilized with varying amounts of yttria. The higher the level of yttria content, the higher the translucency with a corresponding compromise of flexural strength. With their proprietary gradient technology, Ivoclar has created a true multi-powder zirconia with less yttria in the cervical and middle area and more in the incisal. The result is a life-like, esthetic full contour crown with less influence from the stump shade. That means fewer remakes on implant cases and cases with a dark stump shade.
In February, we continued our pursuit of education by attending the Chicago Lab Day held in conjunction with the Mid-Winter Dental meeting. We look forward to this trip every year, and it did not disappoint. We had the opportunity to meet many fantastic technicians from around the world and pick their brains about the techniques and products they use.
We also attended the Cal Lab meeting, held at the same time in Chicago. Much of the Cal Lab meeting focused on the future of AI in dentistry. AI can be a scary topic for technicians of any field, but we left feeling invigorated and optimistic about it will improve the dental experience for everyone—patient, dentist, and technician.
In May, I attended a course on full-arch workflow taught by renowned German ceramist Stefan Picha. We worked through the digital design stage of an all-on-x case, and had hands-on experience micro-layering porcelain and stain over a zirconia substructure. I always love attending these courses because they give me a chance to practice new techniques under the supervision of masters. Below you can see an image of the study case we completed, with stunning esthetic results.
We’re excited about what the future holds, and we thank you for continuing the journey with us. Your dedication to providing quality care for your patients always motivates us to do and be better.
—Michael Selser
Ceramist, Digital Specialist
Selser Dental Lab
