Provisional material considerations: creating a blueprint of the final restorations

Indirect restorative dentistry generally requires temporization of prepared teeth during the laboratory fabrication phase. Over the years, the physical properties of newer provisional materials have improved, which has enabled an expansion of the function of provisional restorations. Better strength, surface finish, and color match have increased their acceptability by patients and clinicians. In some clinical situations provisional restorations can provide information that is critical to the overall success of a case. Such information allows the clinician to verify and confirm with the patient the esthetics, phonetics, and function of the proposed anterior restorative treatment. The provisional restorations can also provide valuable information to the laboratory technician regarding design, contour, length, shade, and even correct articulation of the master model. The success of the definitive restoration is dependent on the accurate transfer of this information to the laboratory technician.