A Biocompatible Cement That Checks Every Box
Ceramir Crown & Bridge QuikCap is a reliable cement that withstands anything a child throws at it
Kids’ teeth are way more fun to work on than adult teeth,” said Carla Cohn, DMD. “I think that many practitioners are fearful of seeing kids because they’re fearful of a child that’ll be uncooperative. But with the proper management and responses from our end, you can do really well. And it’s really a great pleasure to see kids.”
Dr. Cohn loves her work, so it’s no wonder that she seeks out the materials and technologies that will provide the most benefit for her young patients and allow her and her team to practice at the highest level. When zirconia crowns became a restorative option for pediatric patients, Dr. Cohn was all in. With zirconia, she can offer her patients improved esthetics, good retention and fracture resistance, improved patient and parent satisfaction, and enhanced gingival health.
However, cementing zirconia presents a challenge when your patients are children. “Doing pediatric procedures is completely different than doing adult procedures,” explained Dr. Cohn, who’s been in practice for 32 years. “If you’re cementing an adult crown, you have a dry field. You can control hemorrhage and saliva, so you can use a cement that’s more hydrophobic. When I’m placing a zirconia crown in a child, I’m cutting the tooth and cementing the crown within 10 minutes, so there’s always saliva contamination, and there’s always hemorrhage. I need a cement that can withstand that.”
“Ceramir fits the bill for everything I need to reliably cement zirconia crowns.”
—Carla Cohn, DMD
In addition, children aren’t always going to follow dentist and parent instructions when it comes to caring for their new zirconia crowns. “Children aren’t careful with their teeth,” said Dr. Cohn. “With an adult, you can say, ‘Be careful when you bite off with those front teeth,’ but with kids, that’s not a thing.”
Overcoming Challenges
Dr. Cohn discovered Ceramir Crown & Bridge QuikCap, now under the DirectaDentalGroup umbrella, around the same time that zirconia became available for pediatric dentistry. “Ceramir came at a good time in the evolution of pediatric crowns,” said Dr. Cohn. “It fits the bill for everything I need to reliably cement zirconia crowns, and it can tolerate all of the contamination that we have when doing a pediatric procedure.”
In addition to the ability to withstand contamination during crown placement, Dr. Cohn describes Ceramir as strong and adaptable. “Compared to adults, tooth preparation in children is going to be uneven,” Dr. Cohn explained. “I’ll have areas where I need cement that are 2 or 3 millimeters in thickness and other areas where I need a lot less. Ceramir adapts really well. I don’t have to worry about having an uneven layer. It’s very forgiving.”
When it comes to Ceramir’s strength, Dr. Cohn has a perfect example:
“I had recently cemented 4 beautiful anterior zirconia crowns with Ceramir. The child went home and then I got a call that they’d had some trauma. The child and parents came in and the patient had fractured the root in half, but the crowns were still holding on with the cement. And that type of thing has happened more than once. A tooth has avulsed or cracked in half, but the cement is still hanging onto my zirconia crown. For me, that’s the proof in the pudding. That’s all I need.”
