Solventum explains the benefits of Clarity Attachment Material, an orthodontic composite for creating aligner attachments and bonding orthodontic brackets.
When choosing an attachment material for use with clear tray aligners, dentists are faced with the choice between a flowable or paste composite.
Clarity Attachment Material is a thixotropic, visible-light activated, radiopaque orthodontic composite. The product is stored in a multi-use syringe which is used with single-use dispensing tips. It is available in a universal shade that has a chameleon effect to match to the patients’ tooth shade.
This material is compatible with common aligner systems and releases out of the template material consistently without pre-treating the template.
Clarity Attachment Material is indicated for the following uses:
- Creating attachments for orthodontic tray aligners
- Bonding orthodontic brackets to teeth.
Virtually no bubbles or run-on
Clarity Attachment Material was designed to improve control by producing virtually no bubbles or material run-on during dispensing, thanks to its inner design, which works in two ways:
- Syringe design: due to a specially designed channel in the piston, air can escape from the syringe during the filling process at Solventum production facilities. This prevents air from becoming trapped in the syringe, which can lead to bubbles and run-on
- Tip design: due to the smooth, tapered, inner wall of the tip, which corresponds to the tapered angle of the syringe, material is able to flow through the new tip design without trapping air. The new smooth design and release channels minimise material turbulence and virtually eliminate air entrapment.
Ergonomic design
Easy to hold and dispense. The triangular finger plate and plunger make it quick and easy to personalise your grip.
Material volume indicator
No more guessing. The grey syringe plunger indicates the remaining material volume. When your syringe is empty, only the white end of the plunger shows.
Flow on demand
When subjected to shear forces during dispensing, the viscosity of Clarity Attachment Material decreases, lowering the extrusion force. The addition of a dimethacrylate polymer modifies the rheology of material so it doesn’t run when subjected to gravitational forces. It behaves exactly like a paste, showing no observable movement. In contrast, some traditional flowable material move noticeably within minutes (Johnson and Hirsch, 2024).
Customer experience
A customer acceptance test was conducted with 28 doctors, orthodontists and dentists from across the US to confirm the in-vivo handling of this material to fill the template, bond to teeth and for performance during the initial phase of treatment.
There were 94 patient cases that were treated with attachments made from Clarity Attachment Material in a variety of aligner systems. More than 900 attachments were placed during this evaluation, and the results confirm the excitement among the doctors and their staff for this new attachment material.
- 100% (26/26) of doctors somewhat agree, agree or strongly agree Clarity Attachment Material is stain resistant
- 99% (93/94) of the cases with Clarity Attachment Material were rated as acceptable, good or very good aesthetics on their patients’ teeth when considering each case
- 96% (25/26) of doctors agree or strongly agree that Clarity Attachment Material is durable
- 100% (26/26) of doctors somewhat agree, agree or strongly agree that ability to control flow while dispensing from the syringe helps prevent the overfilling of the attachment template, reducing the likelihood of flash
- 92% (26/28) of doctors somewhat agree, agree or strongly agree that there are virtually no bubbles when dispensing Clarity Attachment Material
- 100% (28/28) of the doctors agree or strongly agree Clarity Attachment Material is comfortable to use.
A legacy of innovation
Most clinicians agree, aligner therapy can only be effectively delivered with high quality attachments. Defects, debonds and other challenges can derail best-laid plans.
With the launch of Clarity Attachment Material, scientists at Solventum has leveraged its 75-year legacy of material science, innovation and process technologies to empower clinicians with durable, high-quality materials.
Applying the success of its proprietary syringe design in other dental consumables, Solventum is making it easier to reliably create bubble-free, aesthetic attachments.
Contact your local sales representative for a free demo, or go to shoportho.solventum.com to buy today!
3M Health Care is now Solventum, yet it remains committed to solving what matters most: enabling better, smarter and safer healthcare for you.
Reference
1. Johnson J, Hirsch M. Clarity Attachment Material: Clinical Content White Paper. St. Paul, MN: Solventum Dental Solutions; 2024. Internal data and analysis on wear resistance, bond strength, and stain resistance of Clarity Attachment Material compared to leading flowable and paste composites.
This article is sponsored by Solventum.
