Dental Prosthetics Laboratory; is a modern educational environment where students gain hands-on experience in the production processes of removable and fixed dental prostheses, porcelain restorations, and orthodontic appliances used in dentistry. At Üsküdar University, we provide our Vocational School of Health Services students with extensive practical training starting from their first year through our industry-standard infrastructure, which includes plaster, casting, acrylic, and ceramic units, preparing them to become qualified healthcare technicians ready for the professional sector.
Equipment and Technical Infrastructure Available in the Dental Prosthetics Laboratory
The laboratory infrastructure includes all the mechanical shaping, casting, and finishing stations required in a contemporary dental laboratory. The technical equipment available in the laboratory under the scope of Key Features includes:
- Dental Micromotors and Suspended Motors: High-speed rotary instruments used for grinding, trimming, anatomically shaping, and polishing plaster and acrylic models.
- Plaster Vibrators: Vibrating systems that ensure the plaster poured into impression materials spreads evenly, enabling the production of solid models without pores or air bubbles.
- Plaster Trimming Devices: Devices that safely remove excess material from the bases and edges of prepared plaster working models under running water, shaping them into standard geometric forms.
- Hydraulic Wax and Acrylic Presses: Mechanical and hydraulic systems that apply uniform pressure to compress acrylic prosthesis material into the mould during the flasking process.
- Polymerisation Heating Units: Units that apply a water bath at specified time and temperature cycles to complete the molecular structure and hardening process of acrylic resin materials.
- Modular Workbenches and Air Guns: Ergonomic dental technician workbenches that allow each student to work independently and are equipped with integrated lighting, gas/Bunsen burner connections, and dust extraction systems.
What Practical Training and Applications Are Conducted in the Laboratory?
The practical curricula conducted in the laboratory cover all traditional and modern stages of extraoral dental prosthesis production:
- Fixed Prosthesis Applications: Preparation and trimming of wax framework models for metal-supported porcelain crowns and bridges, as well as preliminary preparation for dental porcelain processing.
- Removable and Complete Denture Production: Artificial tooth arrangement practices for completely or partially edentulous jaws, wax modelling stages, flasking, acrylic pressing, and polymerisation.
- Anatomical Model Preparation and Articulation: Production of working models from intraoral impressions using dental stone and mounting these models onto articulator devices that simulate jaw movements with the correct occlusal relationship.
- Dental Finishing and Polishing Procedures: Smoothing and polishing polymerised prostheses using pumice, polishing pastes, and brushes to achieve a glossy surface compatible with oral tissues.
The Impact of Practical Training on a Career in Dental Prosthetics Technology
The Dental Prosthetics Laboratory improves students' hand-eye coordination to meet industry expectations and minimises their adaptation period after graduation.
- Precision and Quality Discipline: Students develop the discipline of working with millimetric measurements, understanding that even micron-level errors can directly affect a patient's oral comfort and chewing mechanics.
- Employment Opportunities in the Sector: Graduates who successfully gain experience with the technical equipment and workflows in this laboratory can quickly begin working under the title of "Dental Prosthetics Technician" in private dental prosthetics laboratories, Oral and Dental Health Centres, prosthetics laboratory departments of dental hospitals, and dental product research, development, and marketing networks.
