The MetaLift was invented by Robert Westerman, DDS, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Dr. Westerman said the idea for the MetaLift came from wanting “the ultimate mental stress-breaker.” As he put it, “Unexpected problems and failures, especially with crown and bridge cases, can be both embarrassing and challenging.”
Selling directly, Dr. Westerman and his team had acquired nearly 9,000 MetaLift customers. But between running a dental practice and a practice management company, he was already busy and wanted to put the MetaLift in the hands of a dental distributor. That’s where Hager Worldwide came in. Hager will only be selling the MetaLift crown-and-bridge removal and repair system through dental suppliers.
“Acquiring the MetaLift was an easy decision for us," said Hager’s national sales manager, Jim Ortmann. "It really has everything Hager looks for in a product—unique and clear benefits for the end user. We look forward to building off the great foundation Dr. Westerman and his team laid for us."
How does the MetaLift work? A precision vertical channel is placed in the occlusal surface of a crown or fixed-bridge abutment. Then, MetaLift is used to thread the metal occlusal or metal coping, which lies beneath the porcelain of a porcelain-fused-to-metal crown, so the crown can be lifted from the abutment tooth without force.
“Regardless of the life expectancy of cast restorations, a reliable and easy method to remove them is a necessity," said Dr. Westerman. "There are simply too many reasons things can go wrong.”
Hager will be officially launching the MetaLift during the 2016 California Dental Association (CDA) meeting in Anaheim at Booth No. 1151.
For more information, visit metalift.com.
