3M expands zirconia shade portfolio

Over the years, dental zirconia has developed into one of the most popular esthetic restorative solutions:  highly translucent, pre-shaded and – in the case of 3M™ Lava™ Esthetic Fluorescent Full-Contour Zirconia – now available with built-in, tooth-like fluorescence.

In June 2018, the portfolio of this material is expanding to include Lava Esthetic zirconia in all 17 shades - all 16 VITA^® classical shades and one bleach shade.

Full-contour zirconia is trending in the esthetic zone, making it essential for dental labs to offer highly esthetic monolithic restorations. Competitive-minded dental technicians can achieve this through use of a zirconia material with an extraordinarily high esthetic potential. This is exactly what Lava Esthetic zirconia delivers with optimized translucency, a shade gradient designed for excellent match to VITA classical shades, and built-in fluorescence.

“With Lava Esthetic zirconia’s advanced optical features and the availability of 17 shades, a simple mill-sinter-glaze process is now generally sufficient to produce a desirable monolithic restoration,” says Jim Buchanan, national accounts manager, 3M Oral Care. “Situations that require the use of a 'close enough' shade followed by manual color adjustments are a thing of the past. This benefit, combined with the fluorescent effect that comes from within the material, ensures that users of Lava Esthetic zirconia are taken to the next level of full-contour esthetics!”

For the placement of Lava Esthetic crowns and bridges 3M recommends 3M™ RelyX™ Unicem 2 Self-Adhesive Universal Resin Cement.  Please refer to Instructions for Use for the proper cementation procedure.   

More information about Lava Esthetic zirconia is obtained at www.3M.com/LavaEsthetic