The Thermo Clone impression material from Ultradent Products is designed to quickly and accurately capture even the finest features with detailed margins on the first try. The temperature-sensitive material also sets quickly, according to the company, for less distortion in the impressions. Ultradent attributes this performance to the material’s hydrophilic and thixotropic nature.
Hydrophilicity is the ability to displace moisture so the material can reach every part of every tooth. It is evaluated based on contact angle, which measures how flat a drop of water spreads on the material. With a contact angle of 40 degrees, Ultradent reports, Thermo Clone is among the profession’s leaders in hydrophilicity.
Thixotropic materials become more fluid as they are agitated, like when they are applied to a crown preparation, and thicken when they are in place. When a Thermo Clone material is placed, then, the material flows into the sulcus and the spaces between teeth for a detailed impression and clear margins, according to the company.
At room temperature, Thermo Clone stays plastic with a working time of a minute and a half. Once the tray is placed in the patient’s mouth, it begins to set due to the patient’s body temperature. The accelerated setting means there’s less chance of distortion. At 2 minutes, thermal set begins. By 3 minutes, Thermal Clone has set and can be removed. Ultradent says that the leading competitor requires 5 minutes to set.
While impressions made with inferior material often tear at the margin and require retakes, Ultradent states, Thermo Clone’s high tear strength means users can remove set impressions with confidence. Its dimensional stability and elastic recovery also enable the impression to arrive at the lab in the same condition that it left the patient’s mouth, the company noted.
The Thermo Clone impression material is available in 50-mL cartridges or 380-mL jumbo cartridges that fit any automatic mixing machine. A dynamic mixing tip also makes prepping to fill a try easy, Ultradent says.
