Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative
3M ESPE
The versatility of Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative makes it ideal for multiple indications.
Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative is an expansion of 3M’s line of Filtek Supreme restorative products, which includes Filtek Supreme Ultra Universal Restorative. According to 3M , this new flowable restorative is versatile enough to provide dentists with efficient solutions for the many different situations they encounter every day.
The manufacturer describes Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative as having a lower shrinkage than leading competitors. In addition, the material’s formulation is based on the same nanotechnology as Filtek Supreme Ultra Universal Restorative.
Fifteen dentists participated in this evaluation of Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative, rating and commenting on such features as versatility and range of indications, overall ease of use, and handling and placement.
Versatility and Range of Indications
Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative is available in both a new unit-dose capsule delivery system and traditional syringe option. According to 3M, these delivery options make it ideal for a variety of indications, including Class III and Class V restorations and the repair of small defects in esthetic direct restorations.
When asked to rate Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative with regard to versatility and range of indications, 7 evaluators rated it as excellent, 5 rated it as very good, and 3 rated it as good.
Overall Ease of Use and Ease of Dispensing
In field evaluations conducted by 3M ESPE, participants indicated that Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative is easy to use. The material is described as easy to dispense from the capsules, which allows for good visibility into the preparation.
Nine evaluators named ease of use as one of their favorite features of Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative. When asked to rate overall ease of use of the product, 8 evaluators rated it as excellent, 5 rated it as very good, and 1 rated it as fair. With regard to ease of dispensing, 8 evaluators rated Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative as excellent, 4 rated it as very good, 1 rated it as good, 1 rated it as fair, and 1 rated it as poor.
An evaluator from Weston, MA, who has been in practice for 16 years indicated that he did not like the capsule form and preferred the syringe option. Another evaluator with 23 years of experience who rated overall ease of use as excellent said, “I like the way it fl ows [and] its viscosity.” He went on to say, “Overall, I think it is an excellent product.”
Handling and Placement
All 15 of the dentists who participated in the evaluation of Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable Restorative said that ease of handling is very important to them when considering the purchase of a fl owable composite. When asked to rate the handling and placement of this product, 9 rated it as excellent, 3 rated it as very good, 2 rated it as good, and 1 rated it as fair.
An evaluator who has been in practice for 28 years and said he would probably purchase Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable in the future said, “The viscosity is perfect.”
An evaluator from San Francisco who has been in practice for 7 years said, “It fl ows well into the crevices.” This same evaluator, who said he would defi nitely recommend the product to colleagues, went on to say that Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable has “less air bubble formation [than other fl owables] when dispensing.”
Overall Satisfaction
Thirteen of the 15 evaluators said they would definitely or probably purchase Filtek Supreme Ultra Flowable in the future and recommend it to their colleagues. When asked for their overall satisfaction rating for this product, 6 evaluators rated it as excellent, 5 rated it as very good, 3 rated it as good, and 1 rated it as fair. An evaluator from Matawan, NJ with more than 20 years of experience said, “The handling properties were excellent. It stays where you place it and doesn’t run all over, [which] is typical of most flowables.”
