How to Finalize an Occlusal Equilibration

Equilibration is one of the most fun and valuable procedures I can do in my office for my patients. I tell my staff all the time that if you want to have me as happy as I can be, fill the day with equilibrations. But finalizing an equilibration is also very crucial.

It can take a little bit of time to do. But most of the time, I will set aside about an hour to hour and a half for my equilibration, and I follow that up about 2 weeks later with a 1/2 hour appointment and then another 2 weeks later, if necessary, for about a 15 to 20 minute appointment.

Finalizing the equilibration, though, I feel one of the most important things is the clench test and the Fremitus test.

So when you think you are there, and you have got all your dots on the cusp tips and the fossas right where you want them to be, and you have your guidance marks, at the very end, when you think you are done, there still might be a little more to go.

And so at this point, I ask the patient to clench down really, really tight and ask them, “Do you feel any tooth hit before the rest? Is there any area that feels uncomfortable in any way?” And as I do that, I also am starting to do Fremitus testing, so I am actually going to put my finger on the teeth and feel if anything is shaking anywhere.

And I ask the same question in several different ways to make sure that this is as comfortable as we can get at this visit. And the nice thing is 2 weeks later, I am going to recheck those same exact things to finalize my equilibrations.