This ppt provides description of various finishing and polishing agents and materials used in dentistry more particularly prosthodontics.

1. Materials and Processes for Cutting,
Grinding, Finishing and Polishing
DR KRISHNA PRIYADARSHANI
MDS
DEPT OF PROSTHODONTICS

2. When the margins and borders of prosthesis are
properly trimmed and smoothened out they do not tend
to irritate the underlying mucosa, and makes the patient
comfortable to use them.
Finishing and polishing of dental prosthesis
is both cosmetic and healthy. While it
certainly improves the esthtics, it also
removes unwanted plaque and biofilm
attachments, thus ensuring healthy teeth and
surrounding mucosa.

3. o OBJECTIVES
o RATIONALE
o BENEFITS
o PRINCIPLES
o BIOLOGICAL HAZARDS
o CONTROLING AEROSOL
o ABRASION and EROSION
o FACTORS DETERMINING FINISHING AND POLISHING
o ABRASIVE ACTION PRINCIPLE INSTRUMENT DESIGN
o CLASSIFICATION OF ABRASSIVE

4. o ABRASSIVE MOTION
o MAINTENANCE OF THE EFFICIENCY OF ABRASIVE
o TYPE OF ABRASSIVES
o POLISHING
o FINISHING AND POLISHING PROCEDURES
o DENTRIFICES
o PROPHYLACTIC PASTES
o TOOTHBRUSHES
o CONCLUSION
o REFERENCES

5. OBJECTIVES
1. Removing marginal irregularities
2. Defining anatomic contours
3. Smoothening surface roughness
4. Achieving well adapted cavosurface margins
5. Elimination of minute scratches
6. Establishing smooth light reflecting enamel surface

7. BENEFITS OF FINISHING AND POLISHING
Finished and polished restorations provide three
benefits of dental care:
Oral health
Function
Aesthetics

9. BIOLOGICAL HAZARDS OF GRINDING, FINISHING, AND POLISHING
PROCESSES
Grinder’s disease-or Silicosis,
 caused by inhalation of aerosol particles released from
any of a number of silica-based materials that are used
in the processing and finishing of dental restorations.
 fibrotic pulmonary disease

10. AEROSOLS
o The airborne particles may contain tooth structure, dental
materials, and microorganisms,
o Are potential sources of infectious and chronic diseases of the
eyes and lungs and present a hazard to dental personnel and
their patients.
o Aerosols can remain airborne for more than 24 hours before
settling and are,therefore, capable of cross-contaminating
other areas of the treatment facility

11. Controlling aerosol :-
 they may be controlled at the source through the use of
adequate infection control procedures, water spray, and
high-volume suction
 Personal protective equipment
(PPE) - safety glasses and
disposable face masks can
protect the eyes and respiratory
tract from aerosols
 adequate ventilation system that
efficiently removes any residual
particles from the air.

12. ABRASION
 The outermost particles or surface material of an abrading
instrument is referred to as the abrasive.
 The material being finished is called the substrate.
Abrasion may be
o A two body process, e.g. action of a diamond bur on enamel.
o A three body process, e.g. pumice applied with a bristle brush.
The wearing away of a substance or structure through a mechanical
process, such as grinding, rubbing or scraping (GPT-8).

13. Blue circular arrow indicates diamond
bur rotates in clockwise direction
green arrows indicate the direction that
the instrument should be drawn to
counteract the rotational force of the
bur and achieve the most rapid abrasive
action of the bur.
Incisal view of the forces generated during
high-speed rotary tooth preparation.
FB (the force of tooth structure against
the bur).
Fo (opposing force generated by the
operator),

14. 1.Two-body abrasion
occurs when abrasive particles are firmly bonded to the surface of
the abrasive instrument and no other abrasive particles are used.
e.g. diamond bur abrading a tooth, bonded abrasives, coated
abrasives, trimming burs

15. 2.Three-body abrasion
occurs when abrasive particles are free to translate and rotate
between two surfaces.
e.g. use of non bonded abrasives such as those in dental prophylaxis
pastes.

16. EROSION
 Erosive wear caused by hard particles impacting a substrate
surface, carried by a stream of liquid or stream of air.
 Eg.Sand blasting a surface
 A distinction must be made between this type of erosion and
chemical erosion, which involves chemicals such as acids and
alkalis instead of hard particles to remove substrate material
Hard-particle abrasion (also called “air
abrasion”) is produced when abrasive particles
are propelled against a substrate by air
pressure

17. FACTORS
AFFECTING RATE OF ABRASION
Shape
Pressure
Size
Speed
Hardness
Lubrication

18. Shape
 Sharp, irregular particle produces deeper abrasion
than rounder particle under equal applied force
 Numerous sharp edges - enhanced cutting
efficiency
 Abrasion rate of an abrasive decreases with its use
over time.

19. Pressure
 Heavy pressure applied by the abrasive will cause deeper
scratches and more rapid removal of material
 heavy pressure is not advisable as it can fracture or dislodge
the abrasive from the grinding wheel, thus reducing the
cutting efficiency

20. Size of the Particles
 Larger particles cause deeper scratches in the material and
wear away the surface at a faster rate.
 The use of coarse abrasive is indicated on a surface with
many rough spots or large nodules.
 The scratches caused by the coarse abrasive must then be
removed by finer ones

21. Speed
 The higher the speed, the greater the frequency per unit of
time the particles contacts the surface. Thus increasing the
speed increases the rate of abrasion

22. Hardness
 Hardness is a surface measurement of the resistance of one
material to be plastically deformed by indenting or
scratching another material
 Relates to durability of an abrasive
 Abrasive particle must be harder than the surface to be
abraded
 Knoop and Vickers hardness tests are based on indentation
methods that quantify the hardness of materials.

23. Lubrications
 Lubricant – a substance capable of reducing friction,
heat, and wear when introduced as a film between solid
surfaces.
 Minimize the heat buildup
 Facilitates removal of debris
 Cooling action and removal of debris enhances the
abrasion process.
 E.g. Water, glycerin or silicone ;
Water is most commonly used Intra orally
 Excess lubrication – prevent abrasive contact

24. ABRASIVEACTION- PRINCIPLE

25. ABRASIVE INSTRUMENTDESIGN
REQUIREMENTS OF AN ABRADING INSTRUMENT :-
Right particle size
Should Not produce deep scratches
Sharp edges that break down to expose new edge particles
Not gouge the substrate
Not permanently deform under load or high temp

26. ABRASIVE GRITS
 Abrasive grits are derived from materials that have been
crushed and passed through a series of mesh screens
(sieves) to obtain different particle size ranges.
Dental abrasive grits based on particle size are
 Coarse
 Medium coarse
 Medium
 Fine
 Superfine
Diamond burs of various grits. The color
indicates grit size.
Black-coarse, Blue - medium, Red-fine and
White -Ultra fine.

28. Classification of abrasives

29. OTHERCLASSIFICATIONS
OFFINISHINGANDPOLISHINGAGENTS
 According to Hardness( Robert Craig) :-
a) Hard abrasive - Diamond, Silicon carbide.
b) Medium abrasive - Pumice, Silicates, Zirconates.
c) Soft (Polishing) abrasive – calcites

30. I. Bonded abrasives
 abrasive particles incorporated through a binder to form grinding
tools
 points, wheels, separating discs, coated thin disc
Particles are bonded by four general methods
1. Sintering-process of compacting and forming a solid mass of
material by heat or pressure without melting it to the point of
liquefaction.
 Strongest, produced by
fusing particles together

31. 2. Vitreous bonding-
 Abrasive is mixed with a glassy or ceramic
matrix material, coldpressed to the
instrument shape, and fired to fuse the binder

32. 3. Resinoid bonding-
 Particles cold pressed with resins and then heated to
cure the resin
 Hot pressing yields an abrasive binder with
extremely low porosity

33. 4. Rubber bonding-
 Bonded with latex or silicon based rubber
 Because most of the rubber wheels, cups, and points
contain latex, a known allergen, all residues must be
removed from polished surfaces.
vitreous bonded abrasive wheels and points (three
instruments on left)
rubber-bonded abrasive bullets (three instruments
on right).

34. Ideal binder ??
 An ideal binder holds the abrasive particles
in the tool sufficiently long enough to cut,
grind, or polish the substrate, yet releases
the particles either before cutting efficiency
is lost or before heat build-up causes
thermal damage to the substrate

35. MAINTENANCE
OF THE EFFICIENCYOF ABRASIVE
o Abrasive blinding occurs when the debris generated from
grinding or polishing occludes the small spaces between the
abrasive particles on the tool and reduces the depth that
particle can penetrate into the substrate.
o abrasive efficiency is lost and greater heat is generated
o Procedure to maintain the efficiancy :-
1.Truing
2.Drerssing

37. A. rubber-bonded abrasive cylinder (left)
diamond-coated abrasive dressing tool (center)
Once trued, the abrasive is further dressed to a
desired working shape (right)
B, Instruments blinded with debris lose their
cutting efficiency and generate more heat during
operation
C, A scanning electron micrograph shows
significant amount of debris that is clogging the
instrument surface.
D, Frequent dressing of the abrasive removes
accumulated debris and restores cutting
efficiency.
E, SEM reveals that the debris has been
removed and the abrasive surface restored.

38. II. NON BONDED ABRASIVES
 primarily used for final polishing
 Dispersed in gel or paste form
 Polishing pastes Fine or ultrafine
 Applied to substrate with a nonabrasive device synthetic foam,
chamois cloth, wheel.
 Dispersed in water soluble medium such as glycerin
 Al2O3(<1μm)or diamond particles(1-10μm)

39. III.Coated abrasive
 Supplied as disks and finishing strips.
 Fabricated by securing abrasive particles to flexible backing
material
 Available in different diameters with thin and very thin
backings.
 Moisture resistant backings are advantageous

40. Abrasive discs :
 Gross reduction, contouring,
finishing, and polishing of
restoration surfaces
 Coated with aluminum oxide
abrasive
Abrasive strips :
 With plastic or metal backing are
available for smoothening and
polishing the interproximal surfaces
of direct and indirect bonded
restorations

41. Abrasive motion
Abrasive motion can be classified as
 1. Rotary motion
 2. Planar motion
 3. reciprocal motion.
ROTARY
 In rotary motion, the bur in a high speed handpiece rotates in a
clockwise direction.

42. Planar motion
 disks
 removes material along a plane.
 preferably be done in one direction to obtain a smoother
surface
Reciprocal motion
 two different motions at the same time:
part cyclic and part up and down motions.
This is useful to access interproximal areas
 to remove overhangs
 to finish sub-gingival margins without creating ditches
 to create embrasures.

43. TYPES OF ABRASIVES
NATURAL ABRASSIVES
 Arkansas stone,
 Chalk
 Corundum
 Diamond
 Emery
 Garnet
 Pumice
 Quartz
 Sand
 Tripoli
 Zirconium silicate
 Cuttle
 Kieselguhr Remnants of living organisms

44. Manufactured Abrasives
 Aluminum oxide
 synthetic diamond particles
 Tin oxide
 Rogue

45. Arkansas stone
 semi-translucent light-gray siliceous sedimentary
rock mined in Arkansas.
 Contains microcrystalline quartz.
 Attached to metal shanks and trued to various
shapes
 Use-Fine grinding of tooth enamel and metal alloys

46. Chalk
 Mineral form of calcite.
 White abrasive composed of calcium carbonate.
 Use - as a mild abrasive paste to polish tooth
enamel, gold foil, amalgam and plastic materials

47. Corundum
 Mineral form of aluminum oxide
 Physical properties are inferior to those of alpha
aluminum oxide.
 Use-Grinding metal alloys
 Available as bonded abrasive in several shapes
Corundum discs
Corundum spheres

48. Natural Diamond
 Transparent colorless mineral composed of carbon
 Superabrasive
 Used on ceramic and resin
based composite materials
 Supplied in several forms
• Bonded abrasive rotary instruments
• Flexible metal backed abrasive strips
• Diamond polishing pastes. Diamond abrasives
Diamond coated burs

49. Binders for diamond abrasives are manufactured
specifically to resist abrasive particle loss rather than to
degrade at a certain point and release particles
1) Diamond is the hardest material known—so hard that
diamond abrasive particles do not lose their cutting
efficiency against substrates
2) Diamond grits are expensive and must be used in
limited quantities for instrument manufacture.

50. Emery
 Natural form of an oxide of aluminium
 Grayish- black corundum
 Available as-
Coated abrasive disks, Arbor bands
 Greater the content of alumina
finer the grade of emery.
 Use- Finishing metal alloys or acrylic
resin materials.
Emery sheets
Emery discs

51. Garnet
 Comprises silicates of Al, Co, Mg, Fe, Mn
 Dark red, very hard .
 Fractured during grinding sharp, chisel shaped plates
 Use-Grinding metal alloys or acrylic resin materials.
Garnet sheets

52. CUTTLE
 referred to as cuttlefish, cuttlebone, or cuttle
 white calcareous powder Pulverized,internal shell of a
Mediterranean marine mollusk of the genus Sepia
 Available as-Coated abrasive
 Use-Polishing of metal margins and dental amalgam
restorations.
Cuttle bone
Cuttle discs

53. Pumice
 Light gray, highly siliceous material of volcanic origin
 Powder-crushing pumice stone
 Abrasive action is not very high
 Use -Polishing tooth enamel, gold foil, dental
amalgam and acrylic resins
Pumice powder

54. Quartz
 Very hard, colorless, and transparent.
 Crystalline particles are pulverized to form sharp,
angular particles - coated abrasive discs.
 Use-Grinding tooth enamel and finishing metal
alloys.
Quartz particle

55. Sand
 Predominantly composed of silica.
 Rounded to angular in shape.
 Applied under air pressure to remove refractory
investment materials- sandblasting
 Coated on to paper disks
Sand paper sheets

56. Tripoli
 Derived from light weight, friable siliceous
sedimentary rock.
 Rock is ground and made into bars with soft binders
 Color- white/grey/pink/red/yellow.
 Gray and red most frequently used in dentistry
 Use- Polishing of metal alloys and some acrylic
resins
Tripoli powder Tripoli paste & brick

57. Zirconium silicate / Zircon
 Off -white mineral.
 Ground to various particle sizes – coated abrasive
disks and strips.
 Component of dental prophylaxis pastes
Zirconium silicate powder

58. Kieselguhr
o Siliceous remains of minute aquatic plants - diatoms.
o Coarser form - diatomaceous earth
o Excellent mild abrasive
o Risk for respiratory silicosis caused by chronic
exposure
Kieselguhr powder

59. Synthetic Silicon Carbide
 Extremely hard abrasive and 1st synthetic abrasive
 Highly effective cutting of metal alloys, ceramics and acrylic
resin materials.
 Available as- Abrasive in coated disks and as vitreous – bonded
and rubber instruments.
Synthetic silicone
carbide discs

60. Aluminum oxide
 White powder
 used as bonded abrasives, coated abrasives and air propelled
abrasives.
 Finishing metal alloys, resin based composites and ceramic
materials.
 Pink and ruby variations- adding chromium compounds
Aluminium oxide disc

61. Rouge
 Consists of iron oxide, which is the fine red
abrasive component.
 Blended in to various soft binders in to a cake form.
 Used to polish high noble metal alloys.
green rogue as polishing
compound

62. Tin Oxide
 Extremely fine abrasive.
 Less abrasive than quartz.
 Polishing teeth and metallic restorations in the mouth.
 Produces excellent polish of enamel.
 Mixed with water or glycerine - abrasive paste.

63. Synthetic Diamond
 Advantage - Controllable, consistent size and shape, lower
cost.
 Resin bonded diamonds have sharp edges
 Larger synthetic diamond particles – greenish
 Blocks with embedded diamond particles – truing other
bonded abrasives
 Diamond polishing pastes - particles smaller than 5 μm
 Used primarily on tooth structure, ceramics and resin based
composites
Synthetic coated diamond burs

64. POLISHING
 production of a smooth mirror like surface without
much loss of any external form.
Particle size of an abrasive is reduced
Scratches become extremely fine
Smooth shiny layer (polish)
 microcrystalline layer is referred to as polish layer or
Beilby layer

65. Polishing instruments

66. NONABRASIVE POLISHING
 Polishing is usually achieved by an abrasive process.
However a smooth shiny surface can also be achieved
through nonabrasive means.
 These include:
1. Application of a glaze layer
e.g., Glazing of composites
Glazing of ceramics
2. Electrolytic polishing
3. Burnishing

67. Glazing of composites
 Layer of glaze – unfilled resin
 Smooth highly glossy surface
Glazing of ceramics
o Subjected to high temperature
o Porcelain is fired and traditionally subjected to a
"glaze" that results in a surface texture and
appearance resembling that of a natural tooth
surface,

68. Electrolytic polishing
 Electrochemical process
 Reverse of electroplating
 Excellent method for Co-Cr alloys

69. FINISHING AND POLISHING
PROCEDURES

70. 1. Bulk reduction and Contouring
 Removal of excess material through cutting and
grinding
 Instruments - diamond, carbide and steel burs,
abrasive coated disks
 Desired anatomy and margins must be achieved

71. 2.Finishing
 Introducing finer scratches to surface of substrate
 Provides a blemish free smooth surface.
 18 - 30 fluted carbide burs , fine and super fine
diamond burs, or abrasives upto 20 μm in size.
3.Polishing
 Provides lusture.
 Smaller particles provide smoother and shinier
surfaces
 Abrasives of 8-20 μm

72. RESIN-BASED COMPOSITE RESTORATIONS
 The final finish of a composite restoration depends on the fillers
and resin matrix, the preparation design, curing effectiveness,
and postcuring time required for the material to achieve its
final properties.
 Three essential steps:-
1. Contour the restoration either with 12-fluted carbide burs,
30- to 100-μm diamond burs, or coarse abrasive-coated discs
2. Finish with 16- to 30-fluted carbide burs, fine and extra fine
diamond burs, white stones (aluminum oxide)
3. Polish with fine and extrafine polishing paste (aluminum
oxide or diamond)

73. CERAMICS
 The smoothest surfaces can be
achieved extraorally before a prosthesis is cemented.
 Intra orally, however, minor roughness can be
successfully polished without compromising the surface
quality
 Polishing can improve the strength within the surface
region of a ceramic prosthesis because it removes pores
and microcracks
 Continuous contact between the restoration and the
rotary instrument should be avoided.
 Heatless stones (silicone carbide) provide heat reduction

74. (1) Contour with flexible diamond disks, diamond burs,
heatless or polymer stones, or green stones (silicone
carbide)
(2) Finish with white stones or abrasive-impregnated
rubber disks, cups, and points. This process may require
two or three steps, depending on the system used
(3) Polish with fine abrasive impregnated rubber disks,
cups, and points, or, if necessary, use a diamond paste
applied with a brush or felt wheel
(4) Apply an overglaze layer, or natural glaze the ceramic if
necessary.
(5) For intraoral polishing, use intermittent application of
rotating instruments with a copious amount of water as
a coolant.

75. Dental Amalgam
 Burnishing alone will not provide a
completely scratch-free and retention-
free surface for the amalgam restorations
 Slow-speed handpieces - finishing and polishing amalgam
restorations.
 Finished initially with a very fine prophylaxis paste
applied with a cotton pellet or a nonribbed rubber prophy
cup rotated at slow speed and light pressure
 A smooth, velvet-like finish is achieved that will acquire a
luster as it is abraded normally in the mouth.

76.  Spherical amalgams set faster and can be finished
and polished sooner.
 amalgam has hardened to an advanced stage,the
following procedure may be used at the next dental
appointment:
(1) contour with slow-speed green stones or diamond
burs, brown and green rubber points,
(2) apply a mixture of fine pumice and water or alcohol
with a rotary brush or felt wheel to polish the
surface

77. Gold Alloy
 Gold is a relatively soft material
 Slow-speed handpieces
Technique consists of the following steps:
(1) Contour - carbide burs, green stones (silicone carbide),
or heatless stones
(2) Finish - pink stones (aluminum oxide), or medium-grade
abrasive impregnated rubber wheels and points (brown
and green)
(3) apply fine abrasive-impregnated rubber wheels, cups,
and points;
(4) if necessary apply tripoli or rouge with rag or leather
wheels.

78. ACRYLIC RESINS
FOR DENTURE BASES AND VENEERS
1. Contour with tungsten carbide
burs and sandpaper
2. use a rubber point to remove
the scratches

79. 3.apply pumice with a rag wheel, felt
wheel, bristle brush, or prophy
cup,depending on the size of the area
that needs to be polished;
4.apply tripoli or a mixture of chalk
and alcohol with a rag wheel

80. FINISHING OF STAINLESS STEEL CROWNS
 Smoothened and polished with a cloth or chamois
wheel on the dental lathe, using Tripoli polishing
agent and jeweler’s rouge (iron oxide) .
 Debris from the finishing process, accumulated inside
the crown, can be removed with a wet cotton swab.

81. RECENT ADVANCES

82.  Alternative to rotary instrument cutting.
 High pressure stream of 25-30μm Al2O3.
 ‘Air polishing’- controlled delivery of air,
water and Sodium bicarbonate slurry.
Uses
 Cavity preparation
 Removal of defective restorations
 Endodontic access through porcelain crowns
 Minimal preparation to repair crown margins
 Superficial removal of stains
 Roughening of internal surfaces of indirect porcelains or
composite restorations

83. Nanotechnology In Abrasives
 Nano silica abrasives
 Particle size of nano silica ranges from 10-90nm and is
spherical in shape.
 It has been reported that polishing with nano-silica
provides high polishing and low surface roughness. Also
polishing of teeth with nano silica helps in prevention of
damage caused by cariogenic bacteria.

84. Nanoparticles used in dentistry: A review Subhashree Priyadarsini, Sumit
Mukherjee, Monalisa Mishra
Journal of Oral Biology and Craniofacial Research 2017
ABSTRACT :
Nanotechnology is used in the dental field as nano dentistry. Nanostructures
are used in innovations or diagnosis of dentistry. Some nanoparticles are used
for oral disease preventive drugs, prostheses and for teeth implantation. This
review summarises the use of various widely used nanoparticle in the field of
dentistry.
CONCLUSION :
Nanomaterials are used in toothpaste and other rinsing solutions for better
oral healthcare services which will become less stressful for the dental
surgeons.
Nanomaterials used in the dental filling, polishing of the enamel surface to
prevent caries, also used as implant materials that are more effective than
the conventional materials

85. DENTIFRICES
Supplied as
Dentifrices, including toothpowder and
toothpaste, are agents used along with a
toothbrush to clean and polish natural
teeth.
Paste
Gels Powder

86. Functions :-
(1) Their abrasive and detergent actions - efficient removal of
debris, plaque, and stained pellicle compared with use of a
toothbrush alone
(2) Polish teeth
 light reflectance and superior esthetic appearance,
 resist the accumulation of microorganisms and stains better
than rougher surfaces could
(3) act as vehicles for the delivery of therapeutic agents with
known benefits—
for example: fluorides, tartar control agents, desensitizing
agents, and remineralizing agents.

87. Dentrifice Abrasiveness
 The ideal dentifrice should provide the greatest possible
cleaning action on tooth surfaces with the lowest possible
abrasion rates
Means of evaluating dentifrice abrasivity
 Employ irradiated dentin specimens and brush them for
several minutes with test and reference dentifrices.
 An abrasivity ratio is then calculated by comparing the
amounts of radioactive phosphorus (32P) released by each
dentifrice, and this value is multiplied by 1000.
 A dentifrice must obtain an abrasivity score of 200 to 250 or
less to satisfy the abrasivity test requirements proposed by
the American Dental Association (ADA) and the International
Organization for Standardization (ISO)

90. ADAAcceptance Program
 The ADA designates a dentifrice as “Accepted” only if
the dentifrice meets specific requirements
1) The abrasivity of the dentifrice must not exceed the
maximum acceptable abrasivity value of 250 (also a
limit for the ISO standard).
2) The manufacturer must produce scientific data,
usually from clinical trials, that verify any claims
the manufacturer wishes to make on the product
package or in commercial advertisements

91. Toothbrushes
 Toothbrush bristle stiffness alone has been shown
to have no effect on abrasion of hard dental tissues
 When a dentifrice is used, there is evidence that
more flexible toothbrush bristles bend more readily
and bring more abrasive particles into contact with
tooth structure, albeit with relatively light forces
 This interaction should produce more effective
abrasion and cleaning action on areas that the
bristles can reach.

92. Prophylactic pastes
o Removal of exogenous stains, pellicle, material alba, and oral
debris.
o Contains moderately abrasive materials : pumice
o Silcone dioxide and zirconium silicate are used
o Applied to teeth through rubber cup on a slow speed handpiece

93. ROLE OF ABRASIVES IN DENTISTRY
Kefi I. 1, Afreen M. 1, Maria A. 1, Iftikhar A. 2, Fareed M.l and Adel S.l
ABSTRACT:A dental abrasive is an important part of dental services. Effective
finishing and polishing of direct or indirect dental restorations may not only
responsible for good aesthetics but also provide healthy oral environment and the
longevity of the restorative Material.
Aim is to provide the awareness and broader knowledge of the principles and tools
available to produce an optimal surface finishing and Polishing in dental restoratives
techniques.
DISCUSSION: Surface quality is an important parameter that influences the clinical
behavior of dental Restorations.
Different method is used to measure the surface roughness of restoration material
like mechanical profilometers.
Vol. 11, No.1 - Jan. - June 2008

94.  Both surface gloss and surface roughness were material dependent and
influenced by the polishing time and applied force.
 The lifetime of porcelain prostheses can be improved by removing the
microfractured layer with final polishing
CONCLUSION: Finishing and polishing technique are important factors for the
success of any restoration used in the mouth.
The procedure should begin with the coarse abrasive and end with fine ones.
Clinically it is easier to control the rate of the speed rather than pressure and care
must be taken to avoid over finishing and heating the restorations.

95. Methods to assess the effectiveness
of finishing systems and devices
The most common to asses the effectiveness of finishing and
polishing system and devices on dental restorative materials include
aided and unaided visual evaluation
 Profilometer
 Optical microscope
 SEM ( scanning electron microscope )
 Reflectometer

97. REFERENCES
 Anusavice, Phillips Science of Dental Materials, 12th edition, 2012, Elsevier
publications,
 Cutting and Finishing Mechanisms and Materials, Science of Dental Materials.
2nd Ed. V. Shama Bhat BT Nandish
 Craig’s Restorative Dental Materials, 13th Ed. Ronald L. Sakaguchi, John M.
Powers
 Vol. 11, No.1 - Jan. - June 2008 J. Baqai Med. Univ. REVIEW ARTICLE :ROLE
OF ABRASIVES IN DENTISTRY