Ortho
Posted Apr 28, 2011 in Technical
Q: Occasionally, I'm asked to add a pontic to an orthodontic appliance. No matter what I do, they often break off. What is a good way to attach a pontic?
A: I have tried several techniques from simply cutting an undercut or drilling a hole in the lingual surface of the pontic and filling it with acrylic, to adding ball clasps and wires to further strengthen the area. The technique that has worked best for me is as follows:
Shape the pontic, then cut a large area out of its lingual side so that the entire cutout is beveled, creating an undercut at all edges of the cutout.
Bend a wire (about .025 SS) into a small U shape about 3-5mm wide. About 5-8mm from the bottom of the U, make right angle bends so that the free ends point away from each other.
Cut the free ends close to the right angle bends, leaving enough wire to tuck into the bevel of the cutout of the pontic. This wire ends up looking like an Omega with short barbs pointing...
