Why I'm falling out of love... with Strauman?


Last month at a study club meeting I overheard two of my colleagues bragging about the one piece screw retained zirconium restorations for implants. They were inexpensive to make and easy to insert and looked great for posterior implant restorations. Frankly, I was skeptical because I had used some all zirconium implant abutments ten years ago and had too many of them fail (from fractures). I have stayed away from them ever since, but could it be that they were better now?

Of late I have been restoring Strauman Implants. They seem to make a great implant system and I have been very happy with them. The only problem I have with them is that the parts are very expensive and they encourage you to buy replacement parts "early and often". Their transfer abutment comes with only two plastic caps and when I use them, if  I don't remember to retrieve them from the impression after pouring in stone, the company will not replace them, but instead insist you  buy a whole new transfer abutment in order to get two of the new plastic hats. The transfer abutments can be used without the hats, but the abutments no longer "snap" into the impressions when they are seated. This is really short sited of Strauman, since there is no good reason for them to not offer replacement plastic caps for their closed tray abutments other than they hope encourage dentists to buy parts again.

I had my laboratory make my first screw retained  using "genuine Strauman parts" and I was flabbergasted by my lab bill ; seven hundred and forty dollars for a screw retained crown seems like it not a viable option for my patients work given my current fees for this procedure.

All of a sudden, I better understand my colleagues enthusiasm for the one piece Zirconium screw retained restoration. Ok these are not made from "Strauman approved parts" but they are much more affordable, I waited until Rino, my lab tech was at my office to do a color consult on a bridge we were working on together and I quietly asked him what he thought of one piece zirconium implant crowns and he felt  they maybe prone to breakage.  Also, I do not believe they use genuine manufacturer approved parts. Ok , they sounded too good to be true, but what to do especially for my patients who have a fee reduced insurance plan? I shouldn't have to work essentially for free?

As fortune would have it, a possible solution came to me the very next day. "My surgeon had placed a Neos implant and it came with the gold parts needed for a screw retained implant restoration. The lab had billed me about $300 for the analogous part for my Strauman restoration. Restoring this implant with a screw retained implant restoration should be much more affordable. Not cheap mind you, but less than $500. This system is widely respected and by all accounts a reliable implant system. One of my knowledgeable periodontist colleagues called it a "mid priced" implant system and a good one at that. If I had my surgeons use that system I surely could afford to use "genuine manufacturer approved parts" as well. Ok, a "Volvo type implant" may not  have the snob appeal of the more expensive Strauman ( the Rolls Royce of dental implants?)  but surely whats so bad about the Neos system anyway. Its good and practicable and more than does the job its designed for. It's an original well researched design and is certainly not an inexpensive me too knock off  like some of the other affordable implant systems.

This is a message to Strauman.... wise up, you don't make the only good implant system on the market. Why be so arrogant? At at least supply us with the inexpensive plastic caps we need ? Why are you parts so expensive compared to other European manufacturers?  Otherwise, I believe that I just maybe falling in love with another....Swedish competitor.

from Ask Dr. Spindel - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/2018/05/why-im-falling-out-of-love-with-strauman.html - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/

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