What is the function of a dental elevator?
Elevators are used to impart luxation forces to tooth particles, which facilitate severing the periodontal ligament, that connects tooth particles with the surrounding alveolar bone, along the surface areas of tooth particle roots1,2,3.
What is the difference between a dental Luxator and elevator?
Dental luxators have sharp, flat-tipped blades that can penetrate into the periodontal space. Dental elevators have less sharp, more curved blades that fit the shape of the tooth.
What is a periosteal elevator used for in dentistry?
Periosteal elevators are mainly used to lift full thickness soft tissue flaps. The tips require protection and need to be kept very sharp otherwise shredding of the flap can happen.
How much of a tooth’s structure is below the gumline?
Root. This is the part of the tooth that is hidden below the gum line. The root is about 2/3 of the tooth’s total length. It firmly anchors the tooth in the jaw bone, allowing for support while chewing food.
What are elevators in dentistry?
Elevators (also known as luxators) are instruments used in dental extractions. They may be used to loosen teeth prior to forcep extraction, to remove roots or impacted teeth, when teeth are compromised and susceptible to fracture or when they are malpositioned and cannot be reached with forceps.
What are the different types of dental elevators?
There are three main types of elevator. Straight elevators e.g. Coupland’s or Warwick James’ have one concave and one convex aspect to the tip and are used for wedging. Triangular elevators e.g. Cryer’s or Winter’s have a lateral point and are used to deliver class I leverage.
What is a tooth elevator?
Is there such a thing as a dental elevator?
A combination of adopting existing dental instruments originally intended for use on human patients and the creation of newer veterinary-specific instruments has resulted in the plethora of dental extraction instruments currently available to the veterinary community. If we consider dental elevators in particular, this is especially evident.
How are winged elevators help small animal dentistry?
Winged elevators have a unique spoon shape that hugs the tooth and gives the veterinarian added leverage. Our small animal dentistry levitators feature modified tips that helps guide the tip into the socket, preventing damage to the gingiva.
Which is better a dental luxator or an elevator?
The resulting dental luxators are thinner and sharper than elevators, making them more efficient at cutting, rather than simply fatiguing, stretching, and/or tearing the periodontal ligament. Because of their fine, tapered blades, luxators also fit better into tight periodontal spaces, widening the space by compressing surrounding alveolar bone.
Who is the inventor of the winged elevator?
Perhaps the most popular and well-known instrument designed specifically for veterinary dentistry is the winged elevator, which was developed in the 1990s by Robert B. Wiggs, DVM, Dipl. AVDC, a widely respected pioneer in the field of veterinary dentistry.