There are digital impressions taken using PEEK scan bodies, and there are digital impressions taken using an Edison Medical PEEK scan body. The EM implant scan body portfolio sets itself apart from the competition by its multifaceted approach to offering the highest caliber product: quality, variety and across-brand usability. 

The perfect scan with Edison Medical PEEK portfolio

Quality

EM employs high-grade polyether ether ketone (PEEK) and appropriates the necessary time and attention to every piece manufactured to ensure precision and accuracy. PEEK is at the higher end of the price scale regarding high-performance, medical-grade plastics, but also outperforms all other plastics in its category by a long margin when manufactured well. 

EM relies on the German manufacturer Zapp’s ‘Classix’ line of PEEK, who sources the highest-grade PEEK characterized by maximum precision and strength to serve as the foundation for the entire selection of the EM implant scan body portfolio.

Variety

EM’s range of scan bodies allows every dental professional to find the exact part they need. Implant scan bodies are available in regular platform (RP), narrow platform (NP) and wide platform (WP) formats, for single and multi-unit restorations, with both active hex and conical connection options, and are available with a base of either PEEK or anodized titanium. EM also offers a snap-on PEEK scan body for those working with the Sirona CEREC® system.

Across-brand usability design

The across-brand usability design of EM’s dental scan bodies allows them to be used with over 70 different CAD/CAM systems. Together with a vast portfolio of digital dentistry components including Ti-base abutments, pre-milled abutments, and digital implant libraries, Edison Medical’s scan body allows dental professionals to customize each patient’s restoration from the ground up, no matter which in-house CAD/CAM system you’re working with.

What unites the EM implant scan body portfolio

All members of the EM scan body portfolio are made from high-grade polyether ether ketone (PEEK), sourced from the ‘Classix’ line of German manufacturer Zapp. EM’s PEEK scan bodies all feature a maximum torque capacity of 30 Ncm and come with a fixation screw included — the exception being the snap-on implant scan body, which as its name implies, snaps on to the implant. EM’s scan bodies are for both tabletop and intra-oral scanning use.

Edison Medical will also soon be releasing a digital library designed for use with EM’s entire digital dentistry line. The digital library will be available for download with a range of major library providers including Exocad, 3Shape, and more.

The highly sought-after characteristics of PEEK

Polyether ether ketone, commonly known as PEEK, is a semi-crystalline polymer, meaning that while a fraction of the molecules undergo crystalline formation, the other part remains amorphous. From a physical perspective, this highly complex semi-crystalline structure characterized by high-strength bonds yields a material strength that rivals that of titanium. PEEK found its way into the medical industry due to its impressive strength, along with such desirable characteristics as biostability, biocompatibility, and durability, making it ideal for use in dental implantology. 

PEEK is both highly chemical- and temperature-resistant, and can be sterilized with no risk to material degradation or reduced performance regarding biocompatibility or mechanical properties. It can also be used in a number of radiology indications such as MRI’s, X-rays and CT imaging without risk of producing artifacts. 

Scientists continue to develop the PEEK surface for use in dental implantology, as it still falls short in several categories when compared to implantology’s modern workhorse: titanium. While PEEK is evidently a preferable solution regarding aesthetics due to its natural color that is similar to that of a tooth, its biocompatibility, proliferation and cell adhesion are lower than titanium’s. 

Today, PEEK is widely used in digital dentistry, but for longer durations in the oral environment, further research is underway to improve the material’s biocompatibility and biostability properties. PEEK has also not yet been found to produce the impervious crestal seal that titanium is capable of producing. However, being a new material to the market, researchers are optimistic that PEEK has a promising future in dental implantology, and with further improvements to its surface, will continue to raise the bar for raw materials used in the medical field.

What is a implant scan body?

An implant scan body is a scannable abutment, usually made from a plastic material such as PEEK (polyetheretherketone), that is used to aid in the digital construction of a dental restoration. The scan body is attached to an implant and, upon digital intraoral scanning, translates the precise positioning of the implant to a digital file that is subsequently used to design the final restoration’s implant abutment.

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