Dental burs can be used cutting hard tissues – tooth or bone. They’re made of steel, stainless steel, tungsten carbide and diamond grit. There is a bewildering range of dental burs in a dental catalogue, nevertheless for basic veterinary use only a couple of burs are expected.
All burs possess a shank plus a head. There are three main forms of shank – Long Straight Shank (HP), Latch-type Shank (RA) and Friction Grip Shank (FG)
Long Straight Shank (HP)
These shanks go with the nose cone in the slow speed handpiece when the prophy angle or contra angle is removed. You can use them for diamond cutting discs or long 40mm burs. The main use of HP burs is incorporated in the trimming of small herbivore cheek teeth.
Latch-type Shank (RA)
These shanks match the latch in the contra-angle on slow speed handpieces. They are generally 20mm long and for sale in precisely the same shapes as FG burs.
Friction Grip Shank (FG)
These shanks go with the turbine of your high-speed handpiece. The typical length is 20mm long, but longer surgical lengths can be found which are normally essential for veterinary work.
Round Head
These heads bring cavity preparation, creating access points, undercuts and channels for luxator blades in extraction. Sizes range between 1/4 to 9. The lesser the telephone number, the smaller the head. The most effective sizes to use initially are 1, 2, and 4.
Pear Head
These heads bring cavity preparation, access points and splitting roots of small teeth. The most useful sizes are 330 and 330L
Crosscut Tapered Fissure Head
These heads can be used for sectioning multi-rooted teeth and reducing crown height when disarming dogs. Probably the most useful sizes are 700/700L and 701/701L.
Finishing Burs
These heads bring finishing restorations, soft tissue recontouring, alveolaplasty, enameloplasty and odontoplasty. They are often obtained as 12 or 30 bladed burs in carbide steel or as diamond heads of assorted shapes. They’re also available as white stone, for composite, or green stone, for amalgam.
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