If you are a dentistry student or odontologist, you will know that the dental articulator is one of the main instruments which you should familiarise yourself with during your first years of training. It's essential when carrying out any work that involves the patient's occlusion and, therefore, it is one of the instruments that will stay with you throughout your professional life.
When deciding which articulator to choose, it's often difficult to access all the information you need to make an informed decision. At Dentaltix we understand this problem and we want to give you a helping hand.
In this blog, we'll show you the most important features of the Semi-adjustable A7Plus-E dental articulator from Mestra by Bioart, an ideal articulator whether you are a dental student or a dentist. Additionally, we'll learn the differences between the two face arches available for this articulator: Standard facial arch and Elite Facial Arch.
Dental articulators are highly precise instruments that allow the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) to be recreated by assembling upper and lower impression models. In short, it is like having a very accurate representation of the patient with their own anatomical and physiological conditions. This reproduction has a series of clinical uses, including:
- Occlusal diagnosis and analysis
- Preparation of total and partial removable prostheses
- Preparation of fixed prostheses
- Preparation of implant-supported prostheses
- Occlusal assembly and adjustment
- Interocclusal attachments
- Surgical guides
- Wax-up for studies
Mestra by Bioart A7Plus-E Archimedes Protusal Articulator Arch
The A7Plus-E articulator is a great choice, as it is a semi-adjustable and arcon-type articulator. But what does this mean?
Semi-adjustable articulator: the angle of the condylar guide and the Bennett angle can be adjusted. The intercondylar distance is fixed (110 mm). This particular articulator, in contrast to its predecessor A7Plus, has aluminium condylar guides with millimetric adjustment of the position of the condyles (protrusion).
Arcon-type: a classification according to its design, its meaning comes from "ar: articulated" and "con: condylar". The glenoid cavity is represented on the upper branch of the articulator and the condyles on the lower branch, mimicking the human temporomandibular joint.
Its structure is almost exclusively made of metal, except for some plastic parts such as incisal table, mounting plates and adjustment knobs. Its structure is firm, solid and of high quality.
The lower branch of the articulator is designed to allow a working position with 45º inclination and also has a 180º branch opening. The shape of the articulator allows a very good visibility of the models from all angles. All these features make the A7Plus-E a very comfortable and practical articulator to work with.
The A7Plus-E articulator includes a set of magnetic plates that allow a quick change of plaster models without the risk of fractures. It couldn't be easier!
In short, the A7Plus-E articulator has a great quality-price ratio that makes it a leader in its market, being a great choice both for beginners in dentistry and for dentists who perform highly complex treatments.
This dental articulator includes a transport box and you can purchase it without facial arches or together with the Standard arch or Elite arch. Do you want to know what makes them differ from each other? Read on!
But first things first! What is a facial arch?
It's an instrument which is an essential companion to the articulator, used to record the spatial relationship of the upper arch to various anatomical landmarks, and then transfer this relationship to a dental articulator.
Standard Facial Arch and Elite Facial Arch from Mestra by Bioart
Standard Facial Arch
This is a very practical and easy to use facial arch, made of metal. It has manual tightening butterflies, which eliminates the inconvenience that can be caused by the use of spanners.
The Standard Facial Arch allows accurate recording of the spatial position of the patient's upper arch. At the time of transfer to the articulator, it should be done with the complete facial arch.
It has 3 adjustment knobs to fix the position of the arms. Its eartips are soft and with rounded edges, very comfortable for the patient. The eartips have holes that match the pins present in the articulator, these are used to make the transfer.
It is a very reliable facial arch and is compatible with all Bioart articulators except EVA Fix and EVA Plus.
Elite Facial Arch
It is the most sophisticated facial arch compatible with the A7Plus-E articulator and has some advantages over the standard version.
The main differentiator is that it includes a transfer assembly that means the facial arch isn't required in the transfer process to the articulator. The joint is simply removed with the pin, positioned in the transfer set and attached to the articulator at the incisal table location. This makes the process more practical and stable.
It is equipped with an articulation and pin fixation system, the height of the nasion is adjustable and it has an infrared infra-orbital indicator. All these features make it possible to have an even more accurate registration.
The way the Elite facial arch arms open is through a smooth sliding opening and closing system.
Like the Standard facial arch, the Elite facial arch features anatomically shaped, soft, patient-friendly ear tips, the difference being that they are sterilisable.
So, shall we summarise?
The 5 most notable differences between the Standard Facial Arch and the Elite Facial Arch
- If you use a Standard Facial Arch the transfer process to the articulator must be done with the full arch, whereas if you use an Elite Facial Arch you can do it with the transfer system, without the need to use the full facial arch.
- The Elite facial arch has an articulation and pin fixation system that allows a faster and more comfortable registration for the patient, the Standard facial arch has manual tightening butterflies.
- The eartips of the Elite facial arch can be sterilised.
- The height of the nasion on the Elite facial arch is adjustable.
- The opening of the Elite facial arch arms is through a sliding system.
We hope we have helped you with your choice. Remember that you can find the Mestra by Bioart A7Plus-E Semi-Adjustable Articulator, the Standard facial arch and Elite facial arch at Dentaltix and if you have any questions, we will be happy to help you.
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See you soon!
