1. FIELD

The disclosure of the present patent application relates to dental tools, and particularly to a combination cheek retractor/mouth mirror attachment for a dental tool, such as a dental explorer, periodontal probe, or the like.

2. DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

Several types of cheek retractors are currently used by dental health professionals, dental hygienists, and dental assistants in the field of dentistry. Generally, a dental patient would be treated by a two-person team that comprises a dental professional and a dental assistant. Further, dental treatment may be provided by the team using many different types of dental equipment and materials. Such dental equipment and materials may include items such as a mouth mirror, a dental explorer, a cheek retractor, a dental probe, etc. Each element of dental equipment may be used for different purposes, though some may be used in combination for some types of dental services. In general, a dentist seeking to provide such dental services may need to use multiple items of such dental equipment. An important role of the dental assistant is therefore to assist the dental professional in coordinating the use of these multiple items of different equipment.

During the routine dental check-up, such as while checking the marginal gap between an artificial dental crown and the natural tooth using an explorer, or checking the periodontal pocket depth between the gingiva and the tooth using a periodontal probe inside the patient's mouth, maximum retraction of the cheek is necessary to allow access to soft and hard tissues. Moreover, all the time a mouth mirror is used by dentists to have a view of mouth portions that are not easy to access directly. So, conventionally, in one hand the dental professional holds a mouth mirror and in other hand a dental explorer, and therefore cheek retractors are fitted to the patient's mouth externally, which causes pain and discomfort.

Therefore, there is a need in the art for improved systems and methods of providing dental services in a more efficient, comfortable, and safe manner to the dental patient. There is also a need for instruments that are comfortable for dental professionals. However, most designs for cheek retractors concentrates on integrating cheek retraction with lip retraction, or their devices are to be fitted to patient's mouth, which causes inconvenience and discomfort to patients. Thus, a combination cheek retractor/mouth mirror attachment for a dental tool solving the aforementioned problems is desired.

SUMMARY

The combination cheek retractor/mouth mirror attachment for a dental tool is a single unit that has three main portions. The attachment includes a main body portion (cheek retractor), a mirror portion, and a connector portion for attaching a dental tool, such as a probe or dental explorer. The main body portion is an arcuate body defining a border or frame having parallel arcuate upper and lower arms, the ends of the arms being joined by short, parallel legs, the corners being rounded. The mirror portion is an arcuate, single-face plane mirror fixed within the frame of the cheek retractor by gluing, welding, or the like. The connector portion is a split ring annular collar or band extending from the cheek retractor and having parallel tabs with aligned holes receiving a fastener for clamping the attachment to the neck of a dental tool, such as an explorer or probe.

The main body portion may be made of a stainless steel or cobalt chromium. The angle of the cheek retractor portion is set to a value that results in efficient check retraction without any discomfort to patient. The connector portion may be provided in different sizes or diameters so that it can accommodate dental explorers or dental probes of different diameters.

The combination cheek retractor/mouth mirror attachment for a dental tool provides a cheek retractor that permits the cheeks to spread in such a manner as to ensure free access to the areas to be treated, and which is so designed so that even a prolonged application of the retractor is not uncomfortable or even painful for the patient, as well as dental professional. It is designed in such a way that it is capable of being used on either side of the mouth. The attachment provides a cheek retractor usable as a one-handed device integrated with a dental explorer or probe and a mouth mirror.

These and other features of the present disclosure will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

