Green, clean, and keen

sani-treet GREEN from Enzyme Industries — This is a Pearl for your office clinical staff. Do you ever wonder why certain cleaners require your team to wear rubber gloves? Do you ever worry about the caustic chemicals that are in the solutions that our team members use to clean the surfaces and instruments? Have you ever thought about how we clean those unseen places like suction hoses, plumbing, and amalgam separators? Doctor, have you ever opened one of the suction traps in your treatment rooms? Not too inviting, is it? Your clinical team members are expected to clean them out daily. I hope you are interested in helping to protect them. I have a product for you that will protect the people who work for you. Enzyme Industries has created a multi-purpose enzyme concentrate that is the best evacuation system cleaner on the market. sani-treet GREEN is a nontoxic, noncaustic, foam-fighting, biodegradable cleaner that uses the magic of enzymes instead of dangerous chemicals. This company is concerned about the environmental impact their products have after being used and flushed out of the dentist's facility. Evacuation lines and traps will be clean and odor free when used daily as directed. Clean out those messy traps after treating what is in them. A sani-treet GREEN preventive maintenance program helps eliminate costly downtime and expensive plumbing bills, without the use of harsh chemicals. When used as an ultrasonic solution or presoak, your instruments will be clean down to the bare metal prior to sterilization. When diluted with water as directed, the pH is between 6.7 and 8.9, making sani-treet GREEN perfect for treating amalgam separators. Get your office into the green zone! Order from your dealer or call (888) 236-9963 for a sample and more information.

ultrapro™ Tx Handpiece from Ultradent Products, Inc. — My hygienist, Karen, has been having some issues with hand and wrist pain. I was able to eliminate most of the hand pain with hand-specific (left and right) gloves. But her wrists were still tired and painful at the end of the day. She was tested for carpal tunnel syndrome and was found to be negative. About this time, I was asked to evaluate the ultrapro Tx, so I gave it to her. At the end of the first day, she said that this was an excellent handpiece and that she would not give it up! Her hands and wrists felt much better and by the end of the week they felt great! This is the shortest (less than four inches) and the lightest hygiene handpiece, weighing in at only 2.1 ounces. Every handpiece should swivel to take away the tubing's pull, and this one swivels 360 degrees for easy maneuvering. The motor has an internal resistance design, which allows it to start slowly to prevent the messy splatter usually encountered at start up. Karen tells me that ultrapro Tx runs smoothly and has great balance, which I feel is very important in any handpiece. Now, get this: the prophy angles are taken on and off by an ingenious friction-grip push/pull mechanism. Although it only runs at 3,000 rpm, Karen says it has outstanding torque and will overcome even the most resistant stains. The bearings of the handpiece are lube free, so maintenance is a breeze. Order yours from Ultradent by calling (800) 552-5512 or by visiting www.ultradent.com.

SEcure™ Adhesive Resin Cement System from Parkell — You are probably thinking, “Why do I need another crown and bridge cement?” SEcure actually offers some advantages that I found to be very beneficial, and I think you will, too. For one, the SEcure product is a 4-META adhesive resin cement (Parkell is known for their 4-Meta chemistry in many of their products). The product has shown significantly higher tensile bond strength to tooth structure than many popular simplified adhesive systems. The cement generates strong bonds to tooth structure without the need to etch when you use the self-etch primer in the kit. Also, the tooth is sealed and protected against possible microleakage, subsequent caries, sensitivity, and pulpal involvement. If you are cementing porcelain to metal crowns, bridgework, or are using the cement in a post access hole, the material is conveniently dual cure. It self-cures in approximately 2.5 minutes and light cures in approximately 40 seconds. In fact, if you expose the restoration's margins with a curing light for a few seconds, you may begin removing excess cement almost immediately. SEcure is one of those products that you'll be glad you have in your practice. Parkell will even let you try the material for three months risk free, but you must purchase the kit directly from the company. If you aren't satisfied, Parkell will pick up the kit and refund your money. For more information or to order SEcure, call Parkell at (800) 243-7446 or visit their Web site at www.parkell.com.

MedX OraLase from Technology4Medicine — What if you could use a low-level laser therapy to relieve some of the common problems in clinical dentistry? Does this sound like witchcraft? According to the North American Association of Laser Therapy, there are more than 30 different dental indications of tissue healing and pain reduction using biostimulation or phototherapy with a “non-thermal” laser light application, all based on strong research. Some of the effects of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) are: 1) increased circulation in vascular and lymphatic systems and angiogenesis; 2) reduction or elimination of acute and chronic pain; 3) reduction of inflammation and edema; 4) enhanced soft and hard tissue repair; and 5) increased muscle relaxation. I have used this device to effectively reduce tension in the patient's facial muscle during long dental procedures. I routinely use it on any areas of inflamed tissue, such as extraction sites for better healing, or a prepared tooth for reduction of sensitivity, to mention only a few treatments. LLLT allows patients to receive dental treatments with less discomfort and a reduced need for postoperative pain medications. LLLT uses the body's own natural resources to provide pain relief, muscle relaxation, and wound healing. If you are interested in using this process in your practice, I urge you to read “Low level lasers in dentistry” by Gerry Ross, DDS, and Alana Ross, BScH, on page 629 in the November/December issue of General Dentistry (www.agd.org). To order, contact Technology4Medicine at www.t4med.com.

N'Durance Dimer Flow from Septodont — You can expect the same high monomer conversion and low volumetric shrinkage that you have experienced from Septodont's N'Durance Universal Composite. This is achieved through two distinct new technologies: a unique nano technology, and proprietary dimer acid chemistry that results in a monomer conversion of 75%. This provides for a greater depth of hardness that results in longer lasting restorations. Lower shrinkage means reduced micro leakage at the bonding interface and virtually no postoperative sensitivity. N'Durance Dimer Flow is easy to use, won't slump, and will polish easily to a beautiful esthetic finish. Dimer Flow has a medium viscosity so it will not run, drip, or be too stiff during placement. Its extremely high radiopacity allows you to easily differentiate tooth structure from the restoration without guessing. The radiopacity actually rivals amalgam for diagnostic purposes. Your assistants will enjoy the easy cleanup, and you will be happy to find that Dimer Flow does not stick to instruments. It is available in six of the most popular Vita shades, universal opaque, and bleach white. N'Durance Dimer Flow is a perfect companion to N'Durance Universal Composite or any other composite on the market. Order from your dealer. Call (800) 872-8305 or visit www.septodontusa.com for more information.