polishing

polishing

Etymology: L, polire, to make smooth

1 creation of a smooth and glossy finish on a surface, as of a tooth or denture.

2 a tendency of patients with right temporal lobe lesions to deny dysphoric affect and minimize socially disapproved behavior while exaggerating other qualities.

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polishing,

n the process of making a surface smooth and glossy or giving luster to a surface, usually by friction.

polishing brush,

n See brush, polishing.

polishing, coronal,

n the removal of soft deposits such as materia alba, plaque, and stains from the clinical crowns of the teeth to provide cleaner-appearing dentition using a rubber cup or prophy jet. See also polishing, selective and polishing, air-powder.

polishing cup,

n the working end of a powered rotary tooth-polishing tool. Attached in various ways including mounted, threaded, or slip-on and is made from synthetic or natural rubber. Can also be disposable type and attached to the prophy angle.

polishing disk,

n See disk, polishing.

polishing, prophy jet,

n See polishing, air-powder.

polishing, selective,

n a method of coronal polishing in which selected teeth are targeted due to the presence of stains. This method helps minimize the loss of enamel on natural teeth due to the friction from the movement and polishing paste and also decreases the possibility of damage to restorations, such as porcelain crowns, or to exposed root surfaces.

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polishing

the final step in dental prophylaxis which smooths the tooth surface and delays the rate of new plaque adhesion. Carried out with a mechanical polisher, prophy cup and paste.

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polishing 

The final stage in the surfacing process in which the lens is made smooth and provides regular (instead of random) transmission and specular (instead of diffuse) reflection. It is accomplished by rubbing the lens to and fro over a tool covered with felt cloth or plastic sheet or with pitch (which produces the best results) sprayed with water containing finely powdered cerium oxide or rouge. The curvatures of the lens remain unaltered in this procedure. Polishing of spectacle frames is referred to as buffing or mop polishing or barreling (if the polishing is done using a drum). See cerium oxide; rouge; smoothing; surfacing.