Profilometer, SEM, and visual assessment of porcelain polishing methods.

Research has indicated that polishing ground porcelain is essential to control the wear of opposing occlusal surfaces and reduce the inflammation of contacted soft tissue. Five popular methods for polishing porcelain were evaluated by use of a profilometer, SEM, and normal vision. Seventy disks, 35 Biobond disks and 35 Ceramco disks, were roughened with a green stone and polished with one of the methods according to the manufacturers' directions. Brasseler, Dedeco, Dentsply, and Shofu porcelain polishing systems were suitable for restoring ground porcelain. However, clinical evaluations correlated to the profilometer and SEM readings revealed that the Brasseler system was superior for polishing Ceramco porcelain whereas the Den-Mat system was unacceptable.