DENTAL BURS & OTHER

MODALITIES OF TOOTH
PREPARATION
DENTAL BURS
Burs are rotary cutting instruments that have bladed cutting
heads.
This includes instruments intended for such purpose
as finishing metal restorations & surgical removal of bone, as
well as those primarily intended for tooth preparation.
 HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT
 Earliest burs were hand made and intented to be use with hand
powered finger rings.These were made of stainless steel.

 Carbide burs introduced in 1947, have now replaced steel burs &
steel burs are nowadays used only for some finishing procedures.
 STEEL BURS
 Steel burs are cut from a blank steel stock by means of a rotary
cutter that cuts parallel to the long axis of the bur. The bur is
then hardened and tempered until its vicker’s hardness no. is
800
 Steel burs perform well at low speed but dull rapidly at high
speed.
 Steel burs cut dentin more efficiently than enamel.
 CARBIDE BURS
 Tungsten carbide burs are product of metallurgy.
 The tungsten carbide powder is mixed with powdered cobalt under
pressure & heated in vaccum. A blank is then formed & the bur is cut
from it with a diamond tool.
 VHN – 1650-1700

 Carbide burs perform better than steel burs at all speeds & their
superiority is greatest at high speeds.
DESIGN CHARACTERISTICS
 Each bur consist of three parts:
1.shank
2.neck
3.head
SHANK

 Part that fits in handpiece,accepts the rotary motion & provides a

bearing surface to control the alignment & concentricity of the
instrument.
 Design & dimensions vary with the hand piece.

 Acc. To ADA sp.No.23 there are 5 classes of shanks of which 3 are

most commonly used:
A.the straight hand piece shank
B.the latch type contraangle handpiece shank
C.the friction grip contraangle hand piece shank
 Shank portion of straight hand-piece is a simple cylinder
held in the hand-piece by a metal chuck
 Rarely used
 NECK

 It is intermediate portion that connects head with the shank.

 It transmits rotational & translational forces to the head.

 It tapers from a large cross-section(shank) to a smaller diameter

immediately adjacent to the head.This improves access &
visibility.
 HEAD
 Head is the working part of the instrument, the cutting edges or points
that perform the desired shaping of the tooth structure.
 Its shape & material are closely related to its applications & technique
of use.
 BUR BLADE DESIGN
 The actual cutting action of a bur occurs in very small region at the
edge of the blade.
 Each blade has 2 sides- the rake face

- the clearance face/trailing edge

3 Angles - the rake angle
- the clearance angle
- the edge angle
Flute / chip space : is the space b/w successive bur teeth/blades.
BUR BLADE DESIGN
 The optimal value of these angles depends upon the:
-mechanical properties of blade material
-mechanical properties of the material being cut
-the rotational speed & diameter of the bur
-the lateral force applied by the operator to the
handpiece & to the bur.
 If land is present-primary & secondary clearance angle are present

 If back surface is curved – radial clearance angle

 FACTORS AFFECTING THE CUTTING
EFFICIENCY OF BURS
1. RAKE ANGLE:
more +ve the rake angle=greater cutting efficiency
Radial rake angle = more efficient than –ve rake angle
+ve rake angle – chips are larger & clog the chip space
-ve rake angle – cut chips move away from the blade
For brittle materials- -ve rake angle desirable
Materials of low hardness eg.stainless steel should be
used with –ve rake angle & hard materials eg.carbide
burs can be used with +ve rake angle.
2.CLEARANCE
ANGLE
Greater clearance angle – greater chip space-less
edge angle-increased chance of fracture.
To overcome this problem Clearance face is curved /
landed.

3.EDGE ANGLE
More the edge angle – less chances of blade fracture
Cardide burs are brittle- require greater edge angle
4.NO. OF TEETH/BLADES & THEIR DISTRIBUTION
No. of teeth – 6-8
Increase in no.of flutes-increased heat
production & reduced cutting efficiency-good
for finishing & polishing
A fissure bur with straight flutes produces less
temp. rise than one with spiral flutes

5.FINISH OF THE FLUTES

Highly finished flutes show greater efficiency
6.HEAT TREATMENT
 Used to harden a bur made of soft steel.

7.DESIGN OF FLUTE DESIGN

 2 types of flute end
 The relevation cut: flutes come together at the junctions near the
diametrical cutting edge.
 The star cut: the end flutes come together in a common junction at the
axis of the bur.
 The relevation type superior in direct cutting but in lateral cutting both
equally efficient
8.BUR DIAMETER
 Volume of material removed vary with bur diameter
os well as torque & energy supplied by power source

9.DEPTH OF ENGAGEMENT
 Decrease in depth of engagement – increase in force
intensity on bur & volume of material removed
10.INFLUENCE OF LOAD

 Itis force exerted by dentist on the tool head

 Load = 1/rotational speed of the bur
 For low speed – 1000-1500gm
 For high speed – 60-120gm
11.INFLUENCE OF SPEED
 Rate of increase in cutting is greater b/w
30000 – 1,50,000rpm
 With constant load,rate of cutting increases with
rotational speed

12.RUN-OUT
Refers to the eccentricity or max. displacement of the
bur head from axis of rotationwhile the bur turns
Average value - .023mm
BUR CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM:
Can be classified in no. of ways:
a.)Acc. To the mode of attachment of handpiece
-latch type -friction grip
b.)Acc. To their composition
-stainless steel -tungsten carbide -
combination
c.)Acc. To their motion
-right bur -left bur
d.)Acc. To the length of bur head
-long -short -regular
e.)Acc. To their use
-cutting bur -finishing & polishing
bur

f.)Acc. To their shape

-round -inverted cone -pear shaped
-wheel shaped -tapered fissure -straight
fissure etc.
 BUR SHAPES
ROUND BUR:
-used for initial tooth penetration & for placement of
retentive grooves
-Are numbered as ¼, ½, 1, 2 to 10
INVERTED CONE BUR:
-head length is approx. the same as the diameter.
-portion of rapidly tapering cone with the apex
directed towards the bur shank
-Used for providing undercuts in tooth prep
-numbered as 331/4,331/2,34,35 to 39.
PEAR SHAPED BUR
-slightly tapered cone with the small end of the
cone directed toward the bur shank
-normal length – for classI gold foil tooth prep.
-long length(L=3W) – for tooth prep. for amalgam
-numbered as- 229-333
STRAIGHT FISSURE BUR
-used for amalgam cavity prep.
-modified burs of this design are available
-numbered as- 55-59

TAPERED FISSURE BUR

-slightly tapered cone with the small end
of the cone directed away from the bur shank.
-numbered as – 168,169-172
 BUR SIZES
 Original numbering system by SS White dental
manufacturing company grouped burs into 9shapes & 11
sizes
 ½ , ¼ were later added for smaller instruments

 Crosscut was indicated by adding 5OO to the no. of the

equivalent non-crosscut size eg.no.57 as 557
 End cutting bur was indicated by adding 900 to the
equivalent size eg.no.57 as 957.
 Round nose fissure bur was indicated by adding 1 to the
equivalent size of the fissure bur eg.no.57 as 157
MODIFICATIONS IN THE BUR DESIGN

Modifications in bur design were seen with the

introduction of high speed handpieces:
1.Size of the bur
2.Reduced use of cross-cuts
3.Rounding of sharp tip angles
ABRASIVE INSTRUMENTS:
Second major category of rotary cutting
instruments.
Small angular particles of hard substance held in
matrix of softer material (binder).
Binder can be ceramic,metal,rubber,shellac etc.
Rubber & shellac are used for finishing &
polishing.
Cutting occurs at a large no. of points where hard
particles protude from the binder.
ABRASIVE INSTRUMENTS CAN BE GROUPED
AS:
1.Diamond Abrasives
2.Non-Diamond abrasives
-Molded abrasive instruments
silicon carbide(carborandum)
Aluminium oxide
-Coated abrasive instrument
garnet
quartz
pumice
DIAMOND ABRASIVE INSTRUMENT:
For dental use were introduced in 1942
Their preference over tungsten carbide burs is
based on their greater resistance to abrasion,
lower heat generation & longer life
Consist of three parts: - a metal blank

- powdered diamond
abrasive
- bonding material
ON THE BASIS OF PARTICLE SIZE DIAMOND
ABRASIVE CAN BE CLASSIFIED AS:

coarse : 125-150microm particle size

medium : 88-125microm
fine : 60-74 microm
very fine : 38-44 microm
-coarse & medium are used for gross cutting
-fine & very fine are used for refining &
finishing of tooth preparation.
DIAMOND ABRASIVE HEAD SHAPE & SIZES
 Availablein shapes & sizes that corresponds to the
burs except the smallest diameter bur.

 Due to lack of any standard & uniform nomenclature

it can be selected visually to obtain the desired shape
& size.
FACTORS INFLUENCING THE ABRASIVE
EFFICIENCY & EFFECTIVENESS
 Size of the abrasive particles
 Shape of the abrasive particles- should be irregular
 Density of the abrasive particles- refers to the no. of
abrasive particles/area
 Hardness of the abrasive particles-should be greater
than the hardness of the work.
 Clogging of the abrasive particles
 Speed & pressure
DISPOSABLE DIAMOND ABRASIVES:
“ single patient use” bur is a recent introduction to
risk of cross contamination
 Some of the marketed disposable diamond burs are
cobra, monosteryl, neo, patriot, SS white & spring.
ADVANTAGES OF BURS & ABRASIVES
 It is familiar & well known procedure.
 Precision is obtained i.e. margins are clearly
identifiable.
 It is easy to control the cutting.
 The practitioner has tactile perception of the extent
of cutting.
 Debris can be removed by water lavage & use of
suction.
 Practitioner’s vision while cutting is relatively good.
DISADVANTAGES OF BURS & ABRASIVES

Cutting with these instruments usually causes

pain
Vibration usually cracks/fractures tooth
Noise
Constant use & sterilization can cause them to
break down
Dull burs produce lot of heat & pulpal damage
Overcutting if operator loses control or pt.
moves inadvertently
EVALUATION OF CUTTING
 Measured in terms of effectiveness & efficiency.
 Cutting Effectiveness: is the rate of tooth structure
removal(mm/min or mg/s).Effectiveness doesn’t
consider side effects eg. heat, noise
 Cutting Efficiency: is the % of energy actually
producing cutting
CUTTING MECHANISM:
 Rotary instrument cutting can be of 2 types:

1. BLADED CUTTING: with burs

2. ABRASIVE CUTTING: with abrasives
 245 BUR
 Multi purpose or all in one bur.
 It is a non standard carbide bur that do not conform
to the current ADA standard numbering system.
 It is a pear shaped long length bur.
 used for amalgam class II cavity

preparation.
 No need to change the bur during cavity

prep.
SITE SPECIFIC BURS FOR CONSERVATIVE
PREPARATION IN PREVENTIVE RESIN
RESTORATION
 Originally , smaller burs e.g no.1/2,1 round,331/2 inverted
cone were recommended for preparing PRRs.
 Recently new burs that are thin enough to allow easy
penetration into pits & fissures are introduced –
FISSUROTOMY BURS (SS white burs, lakewood, new
jersey)
 These burs allow the clinician to prepare the pit & fissure in
many cases owing to the smaller surface area of the tip.
FISSUROTOMY BURS ARE AVAILABLE IN
THREE CONFIGURATIONS:

1.Fissurotomy original(1.1mm wide by 2.5mm long)

2.Fissurotomy micro NTF(0.7 mm wide by 2.5 mm
long)
3.Fissurotomy micro STF(0.6mm wide by 1.5mm
long)
other manufacturers have developed thin diamonds to
mimic the fissurotomy shape
 POLYMER BUR
 Recently , a unique polymer instruments, the
SMARTBUR has been introduced
 SMARTBURS are available in round shapes –

RA no.2, RA no.4, RA no.6 with an innovative flute

design.
 It has hardness less than healthy enamel & dentin
but harder than carious dentin to remove carious
tooth structure without damaging healthy tooth
structure.
 Polymerburs are used at slow rotary speed of 500-
800rpm using light touch with a slow speed
handpiece & a latch contra angle attachment .
 PRECAUTIONS
 Pulpal precautions:
-damage occur by exposure to vibration, heat,dessication.
-it is hazardous to use them in prep. Deeper than .5-1mm from the pulp
-for removal of dentin 2mm or more from the pulp carbide burs are
efficient.

Soft tissue precautions:

Rubber dam, cotton rolls, retractors must be practiced to avoid soft tissue
injury.
 Eye precautions
-Protective glasses are always indicated when rotary
instrumentation is being used

 Inhalationprecautions
-Aerosols & vapors created by cutting tooth structure
are a health hazard.
-Use of evacuators, face mask, rubber dam protects
the patient from inhalation.
LASER TOOTH PREPARATION

 First introduced to dentistry in 1989.

 Introduction of yttrium-scandium-gallium-
garnet(YSGG) allowed for the preparation of
enamel, dentin & carious tooth structure.
 The YSGG laser cuts hard tissues using a pulsed
high energy photonic laser beam at 2780nm.
 The focussed laser beam allows for precise tooth
structure removal in T/t of carious lesions of all
sizes.
KINETIC CAVITY PREPARATION
 The concept of application of Kinetic energy in the
field of dentistry was conceived as early as 1945,
Dr.R.B.Black
 ‘AIR ABRASIVE TECHNIQUE’ technique was
invented in 1951 which is now modified and
improved as Kinetic Cavity Preparation (KCP)
system
THE COMPONENTS OF
KCP UNIT

1. Precision built device containing a source of

suitable gaseous propellant and means of regulating
its pressure.
2. Reservoirs for containing abrasive materials.
3. An intricately designed disposable handpiece where
tip is made up of sintered tungsten carbide with an
inner diameter of 0.45mm.
4. Device for recovering spent abrasive powder
and debris

5. Master switch for activation of the machine

and Foot control.

6. The other components are: Movable cabinet,

Gauges and dials for controls, a suction hood
with an accessory.
 Abrasive particles:

 The KCP system utilizes particles of alpha alumina.

 The particle size varies form 10-50u with an average
size of 27u.
 It has a Mohs scale hardness of 9.04.
 Magnesium carbonate or dolomite is also used as
abrasive but it is chosen for prophylaxis as it has
properties of softness and less weight.
 Propellant:
 Though compressed air can be used as a
propellant, the gas propellant of choice is carbon
dioxide because the former is not free from
moisture.

 Carbon dioxide with average pressure of 700-

1300 PSI which is being reduced to 80-45 PSI at
the tip of the handpiece is used.

 The flow of gas is approximately 1/3 cubic

foot/minutes.
 ADVANTAGES OF KCP SYSTEM:
1. Performs conservative cavity preparation rapidly
and precisely usually without anesthesia

2. Old filling materials like composites can be

removed quickly.

3. Modifies enamel and doubles the bond strength of

dentine thereby allowing a strong bond without acid
etching.
4. Facilitates the maintenance of a dry operating field.
5. It eliminates objectionable features of vibration bone
conducted noise, pressure and heat. By eliminating
vibration, the KCP system also reduces the risk of
microfracture and chipping which may lead to premature
failures of the restoration.
6. It not only saves steps and time but also make it possible
for a dentist to perform multiquadrant restorations in a single
visit.

A typical KCP takes just 20-30 seconds.

This speed, combined with the elimination of LA in most

cases maximize productivity
DISADVANTAGES OF KCP SYSTEM

1.Use limited to areas of good vision.

2.No Tactile sensation between the handpiece and
tooth surface to act as a guide while cutting.
3. Precise angles and margins difficult to obtain.
4. Mirror surface was made useless in a short of time
by rebounding the abrasive particles.
5.Possible ill effects due to inhalation of abrasive
particles
The drawbacks of Airbrasive Technique' can be eliminated as
follows:
1.Fibroptic light, halogen light improve the field of vision.

2.Though there is no sense of touch between the handpiece and tooth

surface, the improved visibility can guide in cutting.

3.Conservative cavity preparation need not have precise angles and

margins.

4. Scratch free mirror be used.

5. Extensive research regarding the ill effects of abrasive particles

concluded that the amount of alumina particle inhaled is far below the
detectable limits
 INDICATIONS
1.Mainly for MID, specially for composites without the use of acid
etching.
2.Sealant therapy.
3.For pits & class I preparation
4.Removal of old composites, amalgam filling,
# porcelain facing & porcelain jackets.
5.For removal of high points on crown
6. To remove casting irregularities & to modify surface that will receive
porcelain. It is done with 50u alumina particles for 30sec.
7. For prophylaxis
8. Moderate class II & V
9. Access opening in Endo therapy
10. As an adjunct to rotary instruments for all dental preparations.
 IF
“ THE ART OF BEING WISE IS THE ART OF
KNOWING WHAT TO OVERLOOK WHAT
NOT”