To Prep or Not to Prep

Course Outline:

The ability for the modern clinician to decipher and distinguish which materials will work best in a given situation is often driven by a balance between cost and residual tooth structure. Using the science, how can we design the direct restoration to withstand masticatory pressures without subjecting it to premature failure? How can we achieve this with reduction of the minimal amount of tooth structure? Is less reduction better or worse? Is minimally-invasive dentistry just a table top restoration with a bonded porcelain onlay on top? Not always. When do we actually need to crown a tooth? What risks are we taking? Join us as we take a candid journey through various clinical situations that will reinforce what to do when you encounter a decision bump in the road. This lecture will enable snap-judgement diagnosis of a myriad of clinical situations ranging from veneers to onlays, and allow an opportunity for you to practice various preparations ahead of Monday morning.

Learning Outcomes:

1. The difference between adhesively-retained and cohesively-retained restorations.
2. The point to transition an adhesively-retained restoration to a cohesively-retained restoration.
3. Various preparation designs pertaining to different presenting clinical situations.
4. Practice modern preparations and learn how to dial in the occlusion to minimise post-operative complications.