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Laurence Bohan
Content Writer
Laurence Bohan
Content Writer

Laurence is a copywriter and trained journalist. His passion is creating insightful and educational content for dental professionals of every level. Outside of work, he enjoys watching sport, quizzing and spending time with his family.

Flowables are more than just fluid dental composite – they’re incredibly versatile materials that present many restorative opportunities. We’ve compiled a list of 6 tips for success to help you get the most out of your flowable restoratives.

Make Sure Your Delivery Method Delivers

One of the biggest complaints that clinicians have about flowables are the bubbles that appear during dispensing. These tiny voids can be hard to see and difficult to get rid of once in the prep and can cause:

  • Staining
  • Optical defects
  • Microleakage
  • Limit the lifetime of the restoration

There are ways to reduce bubbles, including re-etching, vertical storage, or incremental placement and filling of voids with additional composite, but each requires additional, time-consuming steps. A better solution may be a different delivery method. The innovative syringe designed for 3M Filtek Supreme Flowable Restorative and Filtek Bulk Fill Flowable Restorative is engineered to eliminate bubbles and run-on, while improving handling. The new bendable cannula, available in three diameters, provides better access in those hard-to-reach places for easier injecting. When your material and delivery method work together like this, it can bring you closer to a bubble-free restoration. 

Keep an Eye on Aesthetics

In addition to durability, the ideal flowable composite should provide aesthetic, natural-looking results. But there are many factors that go into matching natural dentition, including:

  • Colour
  • Translucency
  • Fluorescence
  • Radiopacity
  • Polish retention

– and not every flowable brings the same level of aesthetics to the table.

While flowables are available in many shades, they’re often more translucent, less radiopaque, and less fluorescent than their universal counterparts, due to their lower filler content. This can limit their usefulness in certain situations.

However, 3M’s unique nanotechnology enables refined properties at the nanoscale – resulting in versatile flowables with:

  • High fluorescence
  • Radiopacity
  • Polish and
  • Improved wear
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Choose The Right Viscosity

Flowable composites are defined by their low viscosity, which can provide:

  • Easier flow
  • More rapid filling
  • Improved syringe delivery
  • Better cavity adaptation.

You can count on flowables to be less viscous than traditional, paste-like dental composite – but they don’t all flow, or perform, the same way. Different clinical situations can require different viscosities of flowable composite. It’s not enough to simply select the most fluid option.

If your viscosity is too low, it can translate to:

  • More shrinkage stress
  • Reduced mechanical and physical properties
  • Run-on or slumping

Make sure you’re using the correct viscosity for your case. For example, some materials flow well during extrusion and thicken within the cavity prep, while others “self-level.” Filtek Bulk Fill Flowable Restorative uses unique chemistry to lower viscosity without increasing polymerisation shrinkage.

 

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Explore New Ways to Use Your Flowable

Flowables are recommended for many indications – including some you may not expect. Take the time to investigate new ways you can take advantage of their strengths and open doors to improved outcomes. Consider:

  • Bonding orthodontic brackets and retainers
  • Bonding attachments in aligner treatment
  • Abfraction lesions and erosive lesions
  • Repair of small defects

Flowables are versatile materials: in addition to improving flow, they can also help streamline your procedures. They’re a valuable tool for your practice – especially if you know your material well enough to take advantage of everything it has to offer.

Don’t Forget to Check the Indications

From core build-ups to pit and fissure sealants, flowables have been recommended for many indications – but not all. On the flip side, many dental professionals underutilise flowables based on the limitations of early generation products.

Modern flowables have come a long way, and may be more versatile than you think. So always double-check your material’s capabilities before choosing – or writing off – a flowable composite.

This article was approved by 3M.
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