A Technique to Improve Using of Casting Tapes
Casting tapes are commonly used in medical treatment. In order to use it in a more effective way, a technique for using to support irreversible hydrocolloid material is provided to make extraoral impressions to reduce patient pain, save time, and produce less tissue distortion.
This technique comes from a research article in ScienceDirect as following:
1.Place the patient in a supine or semi-supine position, determined by the clinician's preference and the region that must be impressed.
2. Prepare the patient's face. Lubricate the patient's eyebrows and eyelashes, and/or obstruct nostrils or other sinus perforations, if needed. Box the patient's face using boxing wax or drape the region outside of the impression area to prevent overflow of the impression material.
3. Cut the plaster- or resin-based casting tapes (tapes) in appropriate dimensions according to the impression site before making the impression.
4. Pour the prepared irreversible hydrocolloid impression material on the region in a thin layer (3 to 5 mm).
5. Dip the plaster-based tapes into water immediately after the hydrocolloid impression material is placed on the site before it sets. Water will accelerate the setting and prevent the plaster from absorbing water from the hydrocolloid. The resin-based tapes will start to set after the package is opened.
6. Position and adapt the pieces of tapes on the impression material in different directions.
7. Accelerate setting of the resin-based casting tapes by spraying water on the material after adaptation.
8. Use 4 to 6 layers of tapes for adequate strength.
9. Remove the impression and pour in the material of choice after the tapes has set.
This technique of above nine steps uses casting tapes for support during extraoral impressions is an advanced progress. The casting tapes assist well in impression making. This timesaving method will decrease the majority of impression material needed and most important may increase patient comfort.
