The History of the Luxator and Trauma-Free Extractions
“Luxator” comes from the verb luxate, which, in context of dentistry, means to loosen or dislodge a tooth from its socket. Directa Dental’s Luxator product range not only includes high-quality instruments that effectively elevate and cut the periodontal ligament before extraction but also prioritizes a trauma-free extraction—particularly for patients requiring subsequent implant placement.
Before the Luxator was created in 1975, dentists used elevators that relied on leverage from the surrounding tissues, which made surgical outcomes unpredictable and led to complications during exodontia. It was later discovered that by inserting a fine instrument into the periodontal space, the tooth could be removed from its socket by cutting off the ligaments that attach the tooth to the bone—a much less harmful process. After 6 years of testing multiple different steels and after 18 months of clinical trials, the Luxator was finalized. While it was originally available in only 4 varieties, there are 26 varieties available today, with different types of tapered blades that are expertly designed for specific purposes and regions of use.
Uniquely Designed for Increased Tactility
Offering the advantage of working with a penholder grip, the Luxator P-series instruments are thinner and sharper than the original Luxator instruments. Their increased tactility improves the user’s ability to probe the periodontal ligament space, and the shape and pen-like action provides effectiveness in achieving atraumatic and controlled extractions, without extensive effort and force. In addition, the titanium nitride-coated tips provide durability, require no sharpening, and ensure better access and effective cutting.
Understanding the importance of retaining as much bone as possible when extracting a tooth, Dr. Thomas Gilbert was impressed when he tried the Luxator P-series during his DPS product evaluation. “The luxators had such thin tips that they literally slid down next to the root/tooth surface to get a good pivot point to luxate the tooth to loosen it,” he noted. “It is the perfect solution to those tough extractions with broken roots or atraumatic extractions for implant placement.”
Check out the complete Luxator instrument collection at directadental.com.