Intermediate Restorative Materials

Introduction: Intermediate restorative materials are materials that are intended to be used for temporary restoration that usually lasts up to a year. During treatment that requires multiple appointments, intermediate restorative materials can be used to cover the tooth structure to maintain occlusion, protect the pulp, seal the cavity from any external factors such as bacteria and fluid, and maintaining the periodontal relationship temporarily until treatment is finalized. Intermediate restorative materials are classified mainly according to their composition, they are zinc oxide-eugenol based, calcium sulfate-based, glass ionomer cement, and resin composite-based.

Aims: To review the composition, setting reaction, and usage of intermediate restorative materials mentioned above by accessing the Pub Med database.

Methodology: An advanced search was done in the PubMed-Medline resource database. Initially, keywords such as 'intermediate restorative material', 'temporary restorative material', and 'temporary restoration' are input into the search. After the initial search, the articles are reduced as the titles and years of the articles were screened through thoroughly to remove any irrelevant articles. On top of that, the abstract of the articles is read through thoroughly and finally, the articles with the relevant information are read in full texts to collect the articles with significant data for this narrative review. Other than that, articles and textbooks were also extracted from external journals.

Conclusion: It can be concluded that each materials can serve multiple purposes, their usage varies based on their advantages, although some materials may have some drawbacks such as cytotoxicity or weak strength, they could still be applied if their benefit outweighs the risks.