Dental Asia March/April 2023
For more than two decades, Dental Asia is the premium journal in linking dental innovators and manufacturers to its rightful audience. We devote ourselves in showcasing the latest dental technology and share evidence-based clinical philosophies to serve as an educational platform to dental professionals. Our combined portfolio of print and digital media also allows us to reach a wider market and secure our position as the leading dental media in the Asia Pacific region while facilitating global interactions among our readers.
For more than two decades, Dental Asia is the premium journal in linking dental innovators
and manufacturers to its rightful audience. We devote ourselves in showcasing the latest dental technology and share evidence-based clinical philosophies to serve as an educational platform to dental professionals. Our combined portfolio of print and digital media also allows us to reach a wider market and secure our position as the leading dental media in the Asia Pacific region while facilitating global interactions among our readers.
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USER REPORT<br />
Innovative leap in glass<br />
ceramics<br />
Dr Ayupoon Opasakhun demonstrates the use of VITA SUPRINITY<br />
PC in a digital workflow and shows how robust and highly aesthetic<br />
posterior restorations can be achieved efficiently in just a single<br />
session.<br />
With the development of lithium<br />
disilicate, glass ceramics were long<br />
considered to have reached their limits<br />
in terms of function and aesthetics.<br />
This class of materials is essentially<br />
comprised of a glass and crystalline<br />
phase. For a long time, researchers<br />
attempted to improve the material<br />
properties of glass ceramics by<br />
increasing the crystalline phase. With<br />
the development of the formulation for<br />
VITA SUPRINITY PC (VITA Zahnfabrik,<br />
Bad Säckingen, Germany), scientists<br />
from the Fraunhofer Institute for<br />
Silicate Research ISC in Würzburg,<br />
Germany, were able to strengthen the<br />
glass phase with zirconia (10 wt.%).<br />
Improved material properties: The<br />
resulting lithium silicate that is<br />
reinforced with zirconia (ZLS) (with<br />
more than 500MPa), is considerably<br />
more fracture resistant 1 and robust 2<br />
than lithium disilicate (350MPa),<br />
and through crystallisation firing,<br />
has been proven to facilitate the<br />
repair of microcracks that occur<br />
during processing 3 . The fine-grained<br />
and homogenous microstructure<br />
also facilitates more precise milling<br />
results 4 , easier polishing 5,6 , and<br />
improved aesthetics, thanks to<br />
translucency 7 and opalescence 8<br />
similar to natural dentition and<br />
better true-to-shade masking 9 .<br />
More homogeneous microstructure:<br />
Compared to conventional lithium<br />
disilicate with its larger, more<br />
needle-shaped crystalline structure,<br />
the new glass ceramic formulation<br />
of VITA SUPRINITY PC showed<br />
significantly reduced abrasion 10 and<br />
was also gentler on antagonists 11<br />
in laboratory testing, due to its<br />
more homogenous microstructure.<br />
The zirconia-reinforced lithium<br />
silicate is bio-compatible 12 , results<br />
in less microbial biofilm 13 and offers<br />
greater shade stability than lithium<br />
disilicate 14 . After conditioning<br />
with hydrofluoric acid etching<br />
and silanisation, the fully adhesive<br />
bond with composite cement<br />
demonstrates proven reliability 15 .<br />
Clinically impressive: In a metaanalysis<br />
of several studies, the<br />
clinical performance of VITA<br />
SUPRINITY PC was shown to be<br />
highly promising, offering a genuine<br />
alternative to lithium disilicate 16 . In<br />
a prospective study, restorations<br />
Fig. 1: Condition of 15 and 16 after successful root canal treatment<br />
Fig. 2: Supragingival overlay preparation was performed on the<br />
enamel<br />
42 DENTAL ASIA MARCH / APRIL <strong>2023</strong>
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