Tips on how to use Geriostore restorative material
How can Geriostore restorative material be used for restorations near or below the gumline to promote better gum health and gingival attachment to the restoration resulting in shallower pocket depths?
There are going to be patients who have cavities near or under the gumline, and it can be difficult to get a dry field of isolation to do the subgingival restoration.
You may want to try to restore with amalgam because it doesn’t require as dry a field of isolation. But the problem when we use amalgam, or even if we used composite, is that there will always be a deeper pocket in that area.
If the restoration is half above the gum, half below the gum, the gum’s never going to attach to amalgam or composite.
But there’s some research that there can be some gingival attachment to the Getiostore restorative material, which can reduce the pocket depth when that restoration is near the gum line. And that makes the Geriostore a perfect restorative material for restorations near the gum line or even somewhere under the gum line.
Most common use of Geriostore restorative material
Most frequently, Geriostore restorative material is used for patients who have external resorption, which is below the gingival margin.
In these cases you may take a periapical X-ray and see resorption of the root and the entire defect of the external resorption is below the gumline.
The defect may be below the gingival margin, and you will know this likely isn’t decay. This is more likely external resorption because it’s below the gum.
Sometimes the thing to do is watch it and monitor it if there is a slow progression and the patient is older. However, if you decide to restore it, perhaps because it’s grown in size or it’s partly above the gum line and food’s getting caught in there, then you want to do a gingival flap and get access to the area, place the Getiostore restorative material, and then replace the flap. Geriostore is a great material for external resorption or any kind of defects near or below the gingival margin.
What type of material is Geriostore?
Geriostore is a resin-ionomer, which is part resin, part glass ionomer.
This material can be mixed in a syringe or with a spatula and is also light activated.
This material is very friendly to gingival tissues. There have been trials that indicate that the resin-ionomer demonstrates biocompatibility near gingival tissues, which makes this a good use for periodontal and endodontic procedures.
Where the gingival reattachment is very important. We can, of course, use it to restore root surfaces that are destroyed by root caries, resorption fractures, or perforations.
We lay the flap, restore the caries or external resorption, and then replace the flap. Sometimes if you’re not laying the flap yourself, you may need to coordinate with the periodontist to lay the gingival flap.
Then you do the restoration with the Geriostore restorative material, and then the flap is replaced. If there’s a hemorrhage during the procedure or any kind of bleeding because of the flap, you can use a hemostatic agent.
Geriostore is a self-adhesive material, kind of like a glass ionomer, so it does not require etch and bond, but because of the resin component, the etching and bonding agent can also be used.
So, if you’re not worried about sensitivity, adding a little bit of etch & bond is fine, but it is not required if it’s a difficult-to-isolate situation.
Unique properties of Getiostore restorative material
Geriostore restorative material has unique properties. Some of the unique properties of the material to restore subgingival areas include the fact it self- adhesive.
It can be self-adhesive and self-cured in areas even where the light activation is not achievable because it’s dual-cured.
Another unique property is it’s biocompatible to the tooth and to surrounding periodontal structures. So it works with the tooth and the gum. It also has the ability to release fluoride. Other features include:
- Dual cure set.
- Great density when it is set.
- A great opacity.
- Unlike MTA, it does not have a mud-like consistency, so it’s not prone to dissolution over time.
But most importantly when there’s a subgingival restoration that needs to be placed, probably because of external resorption, Geriostore can be a material of choice, especially if the flap was required to access the restoration below the gumline and we want better gingival attachment.
Or you might consider using it in a deeper abfraction lesion near the gum to use the Geriostore if you ever plan to put a graft back over that abfraction defect.
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