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Implant Innovation in Your Hands—Implacare
By Lynn D. Terracciano-Mortilla, RDH
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| There is a vast amount of information being published for dental hygienists related to dental implant maintenance. It seems to be quite the "buzz" topic, as companies are racing to marketplace with new implant instrument materials and designs. This is not the first time the dental industry has experienced this occurrence-the first time being almost twenty years ago. Implant dentistry was causing quite the stir, and many clinicians were widely adopting dental implants as a treatment option for their patients. The first implant maintenance lecture I attended was in the early '90s. I remember seeing all the instrument options available and feeling overwhelmed with the amount of information that was thrust at me in a four-hour seminar. I was confused and quite glad we weren't doing implants in my office.
Shortly after, I met and had the privilege of discussing implant maintenance with a pioneer. He asked my thoughts on the hygienist's role in implant treatment and I voiced to him my frustrations. He gave me the most important piece of advice I have ever received. He asked, "What does the literature show?" He told me if I based all my decisions for client care on sound clinical research, I would always make the right choice as a clinician. A week later I received a package. Inside was an article, about the surface characteristics produced by various oral hygiene instruments on titanium implant abutments and a set of Hu-Friedy's Implacare instruments. This pioneer would go on to author and educate for many years. His work is still the cornerstone of implant maintenance protocols around the world and implant maintenance will always be greater for having Dr. Roland Meffert as a pioneer. Though many instruments and some interesting theories of care have come and gone in my career, those first instruments I received have always stood the test of time and proved themselves in further research. Let me tell you more about them.
Success is in your hands
The longevity of any implant therapy is dependant upon proper tissue maintenance and care. As the utilization of dental implants increases the potential for complications and long-term maintenance challenges also increases. Success comes from the interaction of many variables, one of which focuses on maintenance protocols. The instruments you choose to perform implant maintenance are critical to maintain smooth surfaces and avoid tissue trauma.
Research has shown that instruments made of stainless steel, titanium , and others made with glass and graphite fillers can alter or scratch implant abutment surfaces. Implacare is proven to achieve optimal implant maintenance results while preserving abutment and prosthesis surfaces. Research has demonstrated an increased relationship between an altered (rough) surface and the development of peri-implant mucositis and peri-implantitis.
Implacare is designed with optimal rigidity and will leave no foreign residue behind. The varieties of tip designs help provide the clinician adequate options to address the patient's individual implant abutment and prosthetic components' needs. The ergonomic handle provides optimal balance and control to maintain proper adaptation during scaling. Implants and their prosthetics can be a reservoir for plaque and calculus. Implacare is designed to be effective in removing all soft and hard accretions that can form. |
H6/H7 tip scaling
the implant abutment
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Invest in and choose Implacare instruments which are safe, efficacious and complement the investment your patients have made in their oral health with dental implants!
About the Author
Lynn Terracciano-Mortilla, RDH
Lynn D. Terracciano-Mortilla, RDH, has spent 18 years working in dentistry. She is a graduate of the dental hygiene program at the State University of New York at Farmingdale. Her studies and work with implants began immediately after her licensure. She has been involved with the International Congress of Oral Implantologists for 12 years and is the Executive Director of their auxiliary section, the ADIA (Association of Dental Implant Auxiliaries). Lynn has focused her work with the ADIA on the world wide implant education delivered via Implant Certification Programs in dental hygiene, practice management, dental assisting and has recently created the Implant Coordinator training Program. She has achieved the designation of fellow in the ADIA, their highest recognition and is on the ICOI Board of Directors. In addition to being a clinically practicing hygienist, Lynn is a member of the implant preceptorship educational faculty at The University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. Lynn lectures and publishes internationally on dental implants, maintenance concerns and procedures involving dental implants. She is a contributing author to Dental Implants: The Art and Science (Babbash Saunders) and to Contemporary Implant Dentistry 3rd Edition (Misch Mosby).
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