Page 166 - My FlipBook

ISO THE TREATMENT OF TEETH
useful method of procedure is to simply warm the
shank of the instrument just suflSciently to soften
the gutta-percha when pressed on it. If a pellet
is picked up with the end of a warm plugger,
and at once conveyed to the cavity, a good
deal of the softening may be made to take place
while the pellet is packed. It is also often useful
to hold the pellet in the cavity with an instru-
ment in the left hand, and then further soften it
and complete the packing with a warm plugger in
the right hand. The idea is to work the gutta-
percha satisfactorily with the least heat. It is
principally a question of convenience and the size
of the cavity, whether one or more pieces are used
to fill it. If several pieces are used, it is advisable
to work them somewhat on the non-cohesive gold
principle. Sufficient heat to make one piece inti-
mately cohere with another would in all probability
injure the material. Large, medium, and fine
pointed pluggers may be used as desired, and are
all useful, the surface being finished by trimming
and smoothing with thin flat instruments, heated
just sufficiently for the purpose.
Comhination of Filling Materials.—-The combina-
tion of cohesive and non-cohesive gold has been
alluded to, as well as combinations of gold and tin.