More than just dental illumination: PURAVIS® glass optical fibers offer multi-functionality

The international technology group SCHOTT has expanded its portfolio of PURAVIS® eco-friendly glass optical fibers to include rigid fiber rods. Rigid fiber optic solutions are particularly well suited for use in dental instruments such as straight and contra-angle handpieces and polymerization units. Powerful light can thus be placed where only little space is available for illumination. Thanks to yet other improved material properties, PURAVIS® fibers open up new application areas. The transmission that has been extended in the blue wavelength range allows for integration of applications such as caries or cancer screening based on fluorescence diagnostics. SCHOTT will be presenting its new development for the first time at the international dental show IDS in Cologne from March 10 – 14 (booth 11.3 B 081).

Thanks to a major development, SCHOTT is now able to present its customers new areas of application for PURAVIS® optical fibers: rigid fiber rods for dental applications are now available. “For three years, we have been successfully marketing our flexible version of our step index fibers. Now, we will be giving our dental customers, using rigid fiber rods, the chance to experience the advantages of this proven technology firsthand and without the risks that a new product entails Powerful light can now be made available even more efficiently to the area to be treated although less and less space is available inside the device,” says Holger Werner, Product Manager Dental for SCHOTT Lighting and Imaging.

Due to an acceptance angle of up to 85° – and thus more than in conventional materials – considerably more light can be absorbed by the fiber and thus transmitted. In this way, higher light output can be achieved while maintaining the same size of the light source. Alternatively, the devices can be made smaller and electrical resources can be reduced in order to obtain the same optical power. Furthermore, device developers have more freedom in designing the light source because efficient coupling can be ensured even with complex constructions.

The PURAVIS® fiber rod offers much more than just lighting, however. Improved transmission properties in the blue wavelength range, i.e. near UV light waves, allow for wavelengths to be transmitted that could not have been transmitted before. Power reserves can thus be used and more powerful products can be developed. Moreover, additional functions can be integrated into the device. This includes, for example, diagnostic functions such as cancer or caries detection based on the latest fluorescence diagnostics.

“We are pleased to be able to offer high-precision PURAVIS® light guides for dental instruments such as straight and contra-angle handpieces with 2-D and 3-D geometries. They give the dentist optimal support in the form of brilliant illumination during the preparation of a tooth as well as by fluorescence based diagnostics – both integrated in the same device,” says Werner.

The special glass formula of SCHOTT fibers has a high resistance class and thus ensures the excellent long-term stability of PURAVIS® fibers. The fibers can therefore be cleaned, disinfected and sterilized repeatedly without diminishing the quality of light transmission. SCHOTT manufactures its lead-free PURAVIS® glass fibers in a patented, environmentally friendly production process without using arsenic or antimony. Therefore, they already comply with future requirements of the RoHS Directive. The production process is thus in line with the company's commitment to protecting the environment.