Sharpening Periodontal Instruments

This is meant to be a self-directed course for any professional who uses or is part of a team that uses periodontal debridement instruments. It presents the purpose and importance of sharpening instruments specific to settings where periodontal scalers and curettes are used extensively and, how to recognize when the working edge becomes dull and less effective.

This is meant to be a self-directed course for any professional who uses or is part of a team that uses periodontal debridement instruments. It presents the purpose and importance of sharpening instruments specific to settings where periodontal scalers and curettes are used extensively and, how to recognize when the working edge becomes dull and less effective. Tests to determine instrument sharpness, including a comparison of new instruments to dull ones, are reviewed. Strategies to identify when to sharpen versus when to replace an instrument are presented. Various sharpening techniques are illustrated. In depth sharpening procedures for sickle scalers, and universal and Gracey curettes are reviewed.