Problem-solver: DENTSPLY Caulk’s Aquasil Ultra Cordless impression system

When Dr. Mary Ann Hollis started having some problems with her crowns not seating properly, she began to experience some stress and even began to wonder if her current laboratory was not doing a great job.

Aquasil Ultra Cordless honored as one of the Pride Institute's "Best of Class" 2014: Today's top technologies

But when Dr. Hollis, one of the owners of Grove Dental Associates in the western suburbs of Chicago, switched to the Aquasil Ultra Cordless Tissue Managing Impression System, her crowns started to fit like a glove. She has also noticed other benefits from using the system and made plans heading into the 2014 Chicago Dental Society Midwinter Meeting to stock up on the relatively new product.

The Problem: Crowns not seating properly

“I’ve had a problem with crowns being high. [I’ve had] to do adjustments for a period of time and I have been talking to the lab about it,” Dr. Hollis said. “It’s very frustrating when you feel like you’ve done everything you can possibly do to give the lab what they need, and you get a crown back and it’s high, or you know you need to spend time adjusting.”

Solution: Change the system 

“The only thing I’ve done differently is change to this system,” said Dr. Hollis, who was an early beta tester of the Aquasil Ultra Cordless System. “Now [the problem] has gone away. I talked to my lab, and that’s what I figured out. I called them earlier and I wrote a letter, and they just asked: ‘How is it going for you?’ And I was thinking Wow, now these crowns are dropping in.”

Dr. Hollis had asked the owner of her lab if he had noticed any differences in the cases she was sending along since she made the switch to the Dentsply Caulk system.

“I said, ‘Did you notice a difference in the material working for you?’ He said, ‘Absolutely.’ And then he added that everything is great,” Dr. Hollis recalls. “We talked and I said the only thing I’m doing differently is using the Aquasil Ultra Cordless System. It’s more accurate than what I was using before. Now I’m not adjusting and the crowns are dropping in. Also, [the lab] told me they’re able to scan it and it’s more accurate, and they feel it’s more accurate than having to pour up a model.”

RELATED: Crowns: Impression Materials 360°: How to choose the right impression material

The Problem: Wasted material and patient discomfort

Solution: No waste at all and happier patients

In addition to better fitting crowns, Dr. Hollis loves the waste-free delivery tips and her patients enjoy the faster setting times and better tasting material.

“The patients definitely notice a difference,” Dr. Hollis said. “What we were using before has a bitter taste and a longer setting time. The consistency of this material is really nice. It’s not runny. It’s great. It’s exciting to have a material like this.”

Another benefit is the delivery of the material. “With a lot of the systems, there can be a waste of material with the syringes,” she said. “There’s no waste with this. You have the little carpule and you’re done, rather than our assistants filling up a full syringe of material for one tooth. With this system, there is no waste.”

RELATED: Results of DPR's exclusive materials survey

Conclusion

Dr. Hollis loves the new system from Dentsply Caulk and plans to recommend the product to the other locations that are part of Grove Dental Associates. She works out of the Lombard, Ill., practice, but the group also has three other locations. “I really would bring this to the rest of the owners and say ‘you’ve got to see this,’” she says of the Aquasil Ultra Cordless System. “I think it’s a cost saving too. You have less chairtime and less waste.”

One other important bonus is the confidence the product can deliver. “There’s less stress knowing that my crowns are going to come back and fit just right,” she said.