TheraBase Is the Latest Dental Product to Use THERA Technology

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TheraBase Is the Latest Dental Product to Use THERA Technology

May 1, 2021

Dental Products Report, Dental Products Report May 2021, Volume 55, Issue 5

BISCO’s new self-adhesive base/liner features fluoride and calcium release, strength, and more.

Not every dentist uses a base or liner for restorations, but a large majority do. Of this large majority, many reach for glass ionomers, which can be used as a restorative material in their own right or as a base for a composite resin overlay.

There are benefits to using glass ionomer cements, including fluoride release, and some products in this category are very well received in the industry. So when BISCO decided to develop a new product in this category, the dental materials manufacturer put plenty of hours into research and development in an effort to come away with a self-adhesive base/liner that would do more than just give clinicians another choice, but rather one with additional benefits.

Utilizing the company’s THERA technology to release both fluoride and calcium ions, TheraBase™ was recently released by BISCO, and the results have been quite promising.

“Whenever we’re developing a product, we look at what the market has accepted as the most popular type of product for a specific application, and we also like to see which is the most popular product you have in that category of products,” explains Rolando Nunez, DDS, MSc, BISCO’s manager of clinical marketing. “So we took the most popular glass ionomer that is used for a base and we tested it. We found its physical properties, [and] we gathered that data, including fracture resistance, flexural strength, compressive strength, diametral tensile strength, and fluoride release.”

With that information in hand, BISCO set out to accomplish more than just match those numbers with TheraBase, they sought to improve them. Dr Nunez is confident that this new product has done just that.

“We wanted to be better at all those numbers and then have some added features, so we also have calcium release. It’s our big thing,” he says. “That’s where we thrive. [We added] the feature of calcium release [to generate an] alkaline pH* [that promotes] pulp vitality.¹…So yes, it took time and it was thoroughly developed, and we’re happy with our results.”

TheraBase is designed to chemically bond to tooth structure and release calcium and fluoride ions, generating an alkaline pH.* It is also formulated to be stronger than other base materials, such as glass ionomers and resin-modified glass ionomers.

“TheraBase is the latest product that has THERA technology incorporated to it,” Dr Nunez says. “Within the technology is something that we developed, and this will allow for an exchange of ions as water goes into the resin matrix so it will not lose its integrity.”

TheraBase is going to stay in place, provide the ion exchange, and remain solid, according to BISCO. The product provides a number of benefits, Dr Nunez says.

“The THERA technology is based on calcium release, and when it’s incorporated into the system, [it] will generate an alkaline pH* that has a bunch of benefits,” he explains. “The benefits of an alkaline pH include promoting pulp vitality.”¹

One key factor in the development of TheraBase was to make sure it was dual cured so that clinicians were not dependent on the curing unit instead of on the chemical polymerization. Because it is dual cured, it has the physical properties that allow the product to be used as a base.

Some of the benefits of TheraBase include:

Continuous release of calcium and fluoride ions²
Self-adhesive, no bonding agents required
High compressive strength to absorb shock and stress from occlusal forces without fracturing
Radiopaque material allows for identification on radiographs and effective diagnosis
Auto-mix, dual syringe that provides a consistent mix for immediate delivery with zero to minimal waste of material
Dual-cured material that will polymerize even in deep restorations where light cannot reach

BISCO has released other products with THERA technology benefits, including TheraCem®, designed to deliver a strong bond to zirconia and most substrates, easy cleanup, and high radiopacity, and TheraCal LC®, a light-cured, resin-modified calcium silicate formulated with a unique apatite-stimulating ability that makes it ideal for direct and indirect pulp capping and as a protective liner.³

Taking advantage of THERA technology will provide several benefits that other products don’t provide, “so this we really like to share as to why this product should be used,” Dr Nunez says.

He says BISCO will continue to look for new ways to incorporate these technologies into dental restoratives.

“With TheraBase, you can use any bonding technique and any bonding agent,” he says. “You can use any final restorative composite on top of it, but you will have that foundation. You can currently cover an interesting array of procedures with products that have THERA technology, but we’re still developing more products with this technology incorporated into it.”

This latest product has not been in use for long, and Dr Nunez is proud of the feedback BISCO has received so far from clinicians who have been using TheraBase.

“There is a sense of accomplishment that you really can’t describe,” he says. “You start out with a formula or a prototype and then all of a sudden it has a label and you hear about people using it, and that is what I like to say is an ultimate high.” ●

References

1. T. Okabe, M. Sakamoto, H. Takeuchi, K. Matsushima. Effects of pH on Mineralization Ability of Human Dental Pulp Cells. Journal of Endodontics. Volume 32, Number 3, March 2006.

2. Gleave CM, Chen L, Suh BI. Calcium & fluoride recharge of resin cements. Dent Mater. 2016;32(suppl 1):e26 doi:10.1016/j.dental.2016.08.051

3. Apatite-forming Ability of TheraCal Pulp-Capping Material, M.G. GANDOLFI, F. SIBONI, P. TADDEI, E. MODENA, and C. PRATI J Dent Res 90 (Spec Iss A):abstract number 2520, 2011 (www.dentalresearch.org)

*BISCO data on file.

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