112391_CEREC 2015 Q4 - page 52

50 | CERECDOCTORS.COM | QUARTER 4 | 2015
E S T H E T I C S | | | B Y M I K E S K R A M S TA D , D . D . S .
what shade should i use for this? This is one of the most common questions asked by a dentist when fabricating anterior
restorations. They may pose this question to themselves, their assistants, colleagues, lab technicians or even the patient. This
can be a very difficult and often subjective question to answer. You have to account for the amount of tooth reduction, which
restorative material you are going to use, the thickness of the restorative material and how that restorative material is going to account for
the enamel properties (specifically value and translucence) you prepped away. To top it all off, it has been scientifically proven that some
people have a better eye for color than others. So, how do you tell?
What Is the Right Shade?
Answering the Most Common Question From Dentists
Many of us have been using technology to improve the accuracy
and reliability of certain dental procedures. We do this to increase
the chances that our restorations will be successful in the long
term. Shade is a key factor in the success of the restoration,
so it makes sense that we should turn to technology to
help assist us in answering the difficult question of “what
is the right shade?” In this article, we will explore the
third generation of VITA’s shade-taking technology:
The Easyshade V (Fig. 1).
I have owned and been successful with the previous
versionof thisproduct (EasyshadeAdvance) since2012. I
went frombeinga skepticof this technology tousing it on
every case in the esthetic zone as a shade-taking aid. The
Easyshade Vhasmany notable improvements compared
to the Advance, including a redesigned inductive
charging base, better overall ergonomics, overall speed increase and
an intuitive color LED touchscreen. Another very helpful improve-
ment are the sterilization tips. In the past, plastic sleeves were used
andwere extremely difficult toproperly position. The newdesign is an
InfectionControl Shieldthat canbeeasilyandquickly just “popped”on
the tip (Fig. 2). The hallmark of the technology remains the same and
is as good as ever: the ability to take basic shademeasurements in both
Vita Classical (A1-D4) and 3D-Master shades, and also a CAD Block
ShadeOption to display the closest Vitamachinable block shade.
The home screen will offer you three choices: basic shade
measurement, averaged shade measurement and tooth area
measurement (Fig. 3). For most cases, the easiest measurement
to take will be the basic tooth measurement, and that is what we
will concentrate on first. After clicking that icon, you should select
the “tooth” icon to measure the base shade (Fig. 4). The reported
shades will be both the 3D-Master shade on the left and the Vita
Classical shade on the right (Fig. 5). You will also see a color-bar
underneath the shades that allows you to choose an acceptable
shadewithin each system. If you requiremore detail on the shades,
you can click on a reported shade and you will get information on
influencing shades, shade deviation, lightness, chroma, and hue of
the tooth (Fig. 6).
The “Block mode” option of the Easyshade V is a particularly
interesting one for CEREC users. If you click the middle icon
(Block), the software will tell you the closest VITA block to mill
(Fig. 7). With a good stump shade, I have found this mode to be
spot-on for Vita Mark II and Vita TriLuxe blocks. Not only does
the Easyshade V read shade, but it also tells you which block to
mill if you are using VITA!
Other options you have with the Easyshade V are to take tooth-
area measurements and intraoral/extraoral shades of ceramic
restorations. When taking tooth area measurements, you will
separately measure the cervical, middle and incisal shades
(Figs. 8 and 9). This will also report in both Classical and 3-D
shades. To measure ceramic restorations or shade tabs, you toggle
with the left arrows to the second screen, and can follow the
Fig. 1: The Easyshade V
Fig. 2: New Infection
Control Shield