The most common question we get asked is when should you use 35 or 50 micron Tor VM matrix bands. The first thing to say is that this is mainly a question of personal preference and we think it’s really cool that Tor VM give dental professionals the choice. What follows are some of our thoughts on this after well over a decade messing around with sectional matrix bands....
When using sectional matrix bands there are two main considerations:
1) Getting a tight contact point
2) Getting an anatomical contact profile
The thinner the band the easier it is to achieve the separation required to get a good contact point!
BUT
There is a trade off as if the band is too thin and weak (relative to the separation force applied) then the band will deform and this will lose the desired contact profile.
The whole point of sectional matrix bands is to help you achieve an anatomical, curved, proximal contour. Yet with so many of the systems on the market the bands are made from a soft metal. This means that when the strong ring is placed around the band it deforms, flattens off and sometimes opens up at the cervical margin. The stronger the ring the bigger the risk... just watch closely what happens when you place your separation ring and sometimes you will see the flattening and deformation.
All The Tor VM bands we stock are made of hardened steel. It’s magic stuff and resists this deformation way better than softer sectional bands. This is a big reason we love the bands so much. And so finally we get to the question of which thickness when...
Well we personally recommend 50 micron bands when the operator wants to use a strong nickel titanium ring separator. This includes our fantastic Micerium NITI rings. When you are using a ring like this you should be able to achieve 50 microns of separation so the bigger risk becomes the deformation of the band and the additional thickness will help.If you want to use a more traditional stainless steel ring (which includes all Tor VM rings) then you may get slightly less separation so a 35 micron band may be a better option. Finally we prefer 35 micron bands for the ringless technique
