ICON.

ICON ® – “Atraumatic Cavity Treatment”

ICON® is a product that we have implemented in our office for a number of years with great success. Icon has two main purposes: it prevents progression of small cavities on the flossing surfaces of teeth and can be used as a conservative cosmetic treatment for “white spots” on front teeth.

Cavities that form between teeth (on the flossing surfaces) are identified on x-rays taken at yearly exams. They start very small (incipient) and don’t require treatment. However, over time they generally increase in size, which requires treatment such as a filling or other type of dental restoration. In years past, our only option was to meticulously “watch” them over time and if they progressed to an unacceptable level, we would intervene by removing tooth structure to some capacity. ICON® is an alternative used to treat these small cavities and prevent them from becoming larger without removing any tooth structure. There is a chance that the cavity progresses, and a filling is eventually needed, however delaying this process as long as possible is a huge benefit to our patients.

This product works by using a sequence of conditioning materials to cleanse the tooth surface, followed by an invisible resin that covers the affected area. You can think of this material like a clear nail polish. The biggest benefit here is that we do not need to remove any tooth structure and we very rarely need to deliver anesthetic/numbing.