Dental cements
Choosing the right dental cement doesn’t need to be a struggle. Our clinically proven tooth cements are formulated to provide strong, dependable adhesion, excellent aesthetics and virtually no post-op sensitivity. By combining ease-of-use with simplified technologies, we can help you handle virtually any indirect procedure with just one or two components.
When it has to hold, rely on 3M™ Dental Cements.
Reliable, predictable results and simplified inventory help to provide the best outcomes for you and your patients.
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Goodbye complexity
As a dental professional, you need reliable products that minimize chair time and maximize patient satisfaction.
Eliminate the hassle and confusion of multiple resin cements, primers and adhesives with our dental cements that are backed by decades of clinically-proven technology and a team of solutions experts – so you can feel confident in your practice and the health of your patients.
Strength. Reliability. Simplicity. - Who says you can’t have it all?
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3M dental cements are a family of clinically proven teeth cementing technologies designed to handle virtually any indirect procedure with just one or two components. They are formulated to provide strong, dependable adhesion. Excellent aesthetics. And reduced post-op sensitivity.
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By combining ease of use with industry-leading performance, 3M dental cements give you more freedom to work the way that works best for you.
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Standardizing your practice on 3M dental cements ensures that you will achieve reliable, predictable results, time after time. It also helps simplify your inventory and speed up your procedures. So you can focus on delivering the best possible outcomes for your patients.
Choose the dental cement that fits your need
Truly Universal |
Proven Reliability |
Everyday Utility |
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3M™ RelyX™ Universal3M RelyX Universal Resin Cement works both as a standalone, Self-adhesive cement and as an adhesive cement when combined with 3M™ Scotchbond™ Universal Plus Adhesive. Provides 80% less cement waste due to the Micro Mixing Tip and 50% less plastic waste due to the ergonomic syringe design. |
3M™ RelyX™ Unicem 2Your "go-to" Self-Adhesive Resin for simplicity, convenience and reliability. Thanks to the dual-cure, self-adhesive chemistry, RelyX Unicem cements deliver high adhesion, resistance to discoloration, long-term stability and more. |
3M™ Ketac™ Cem Plus in ClickerKetac Cem Plus Resin-Modified Glass Ionomer cement offers a perfect mix of convenience and proven clinical performance. With high bond strength and virtually no post-operative sensitivities it ensures optimum results for routine cementations. |
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Known for |
Simplification and Strength |
Most Clinically Proven |
Moisture tolerance |
Bonding strength |
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Moisture tolerance |
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Aesthetics |
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| Discover 3M RelyX Universal | Discover 3M RelyX Unicem 2 | Discover 3M KETAC CEM PLUS IN CLICKER |
Related dental cement products
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More than a post alone, RelyX Fiber Post is a complete system, designed to support and secure the coronal restoration, in cases of insufficient residual tooth structure (<4mm).
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Ketac Cem glass ionomer cement has been trusted and used by dentists for over 20 years and is now available in different dispensing systems including Clicker™, Aplicap™, Maxicap™ and powder and liquid form.
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RelyX™ Veneer Cement is a veneer cement system with a syringe delivery and colour match system. RelyX™ Veneer Cement provides bonding of porcelain, composite and ceramic veneers.
For over 50 years, dental practitioners around the world have relied on the strength, ease of use and reliability of 3M dental cements to simplify their procedures and keep their patients smiling.
Everything you need to know for great tooth cementation results
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Dental cement selection made easyChoose the best dental cement for your procedure and make the selection process easy and fast.
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Case: Full-arch reconstruction integrating three different dental cementsClinical case by Dr. Carlos Eduardo Sabrosa, DDS, MSD, DScD
Dive a little deeper with insights from industry experts
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Common Dental Cementation Pitfalls and How to Overcome Them
Cementing indirect restorations can be tricky – learn how to identify pitfalls, minimize flaws, streamline your procedure and achieve long term restorative success.
Author: Günther Schlosser | Training Manager
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Free On-Demand Webinar: Clinician's guide to cementing and bonding contemporary dental materials
Today’s tooth cementation protocols can be confusing in terms of cement choices, whether to bond or not, and determining the appropriate technique for the task at hand. This 2-part webinar series will address the science of adhesion, rationale for cement selection, and techniques known to produce reliable, long term outcomes for most common clinical situations.
Our speaker: Dr. Daniel J. Poticny
Ready to give 3M dental cements a try?
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A representative will schedule an in-office or a virtual demo.
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Dental cementation - Clinical recommendations
Achieve better outcomes – every time, by simplifying and standardising your dental cementation procedures with our research-based recommendations from five leading clinical experts.
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Success Simplified in the dental cementation workflow
Indirect restorative procedures are highly complex. They consist of many different clinical and laboratory steps, and each separate step involves a number of clinical challenges.
That's why 3M has worked with five expert clinicians to develop a consensus for best-practice recommendations in prosthodontic procedures. These are based on the latest scientific research findings and personal long-term experience in clinical environments.
The dental cementation clinical recommendations are based on 3 basic rules:
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1. Select the simplest possible way that ensures reliable dental cementation results -
2. Be as minimally invasive as possible -
3. Ensure cost-efficiency for the dentist and the patient
Consistent quality in dental cementation enabled by simplification and standardization
Different restorative materials – different cementation needs: Dental practitioners are often facing difficulties when they want to place a tooth-colored ceramic restoration. Due to distinctions in the mechanical properties and chemical composition, requirements regarding substrate pretreatment and cement type vary widely.
However, the situation is not as complex as it might seem at first, provided that some basic principles are respected. The goal is to select a limited number of products, which cover all possible indications. In conjunction with a standardization of procedures, this measure helps reduce the risk of possible errors in the process (Table 1).
1. Available options and decision criteria for dental cementation
For choosing the best suitable dental cementation solution, the restoration material class and flexural strength on the one hand, and the preparation design/indication on the other are important.
Focusing on ceramic restorations, there is a need to distinguish between oxide ceramics like zirconia, and silicate ceramics such as feldspathic ceramics and lithium disilicate. With regard to the preparation design, dentists need to distinguish between designs that ensure macro-mechanical retention (e.g. crowns) and those which are non-retentive (e.g. veneers).
The kind of pre-treatment – etching with hydrofluoric acid or sandblasting – is dependent on the existence of a glass-phase in the restorative material. The desired micro-retentive surface is obtained by etching only if enough etchable particles are present. Otherwise, air particle abrasion is required. Following air particle abrasion, the intaglio of the restoration needs to be cleaned e.g. with sodium hypochlorite and rinsed with water. Phosphoric acid is not suitable in this context. Recommendations are summarized in Table 2.
Table 2: Recommendations regarding the pre-treatment of the dental restorative material.
Dental cements are divided into three categories: conventional cements including resin modified glass ionomer cements (RMGI), self-adhesive resin cements, and resin cement systems (provided with a separate adhesive). Conventional cements like zinc phosphate, glass ionomer cements and RMGIs offer relatively low adhesion values, but the benefit of simple intraoral handling. Therefore, they are popular for highly retentive indications like crowns. The highest adhesion values are obtained with resin cements that use a separate adhesive – at the expense of a more complex procedure. They are needed for bonding to enamel and non-retentive designs like veneers. In order to combine the benefits of both cement classes, the self-adhesive cements were developed. They offer a somewhat lower adhesion than adhesive resin cements, but are easy to use as there is no need for a separate pretreatment of the tooth structure.
An additional decision factor is the tooth position in the mouth, e. g. esthetic needs for the anteriors or isolation possibilities for posterior teeth. Furthermore, the substrate should be taken into consideration, e. g. implant restorations may need lower bond strength to allow for easy excess clean-up.
2. Knowing your dental cement choices simplifies your workflow
Recent advances in materials development have paved the way for further simplification: they resulted in a new class of UNIVERSAL resin cements covering virtually every resin cement indication. Used alone, the products function as self-adhesive resin cements. However, they may also be combined with a separate adhesive to further enhance the bond strength, which makes them belong to the category of adhesive resin cements, too. This covering of two cement categories with a single product reduces the inventory management effort and facilitates workflow standardization.
Table 3: Summary of dental cement properties depending on the category.
Ratings in the table are based on the expert consensus of the clinicians.
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Conventional dental cements
Conventional dental cements are recommended for cementing metal-ceramic crowns and bridges to teeth and crowns to implant abutments. In the latter case, the low bond strength is beneficial as it facilitates excess removal, which is important as undetected excess causes postoperative complications associated with residual cement.
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Self-adhesive dental resin cements
Self-adhesive dental resin cements are the material of choice for all other indications that do not require ultimate bond strength, e.g. oxide ceramic crowns and bridges placed on teeth as well as glass ceramic restorations with a retentive design.
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Dental adhesive resin cements
Dental adhesive resin cements are preferred in clinical situations with a non-retentive preparation design and for low-strength ceramics. They perform particularly well when bonding to enamel is essential, e.g. in situations with a limited bonding surface (e.g. Maryland bridges). There are dual-cure and light-cure options available. The light-cure only resin cements offer the advantage of an unlimited working time which is particularly beneficial in challenging procedures such as veneer placement, but care needs to be taken to allow for sufficient light cure.
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Universal dental resin cements
Universal dental resin cements may be used for both, self-adhesive and adhesive resin cement indications described above, depending on the material- and indication-specific bond strength requirements. To boost the bond strength, the cement is typically combined with a specific system adhesive.
Case 1: Cementation for crowns
Position: 6 Anteriors Substrate: Implant Indication: Crown Restoration Material: Glass Ceramic
Recommendation: Conventional Dental Cement
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- Zirconia abutment to be restored with a glass ceramic crown
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- Application of 3M™ Ketac™ Cem Plus Resin-Modified Glass Ionomer Cement to the crown
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- Final treatment result.
Case 2a: Self-adhesive resin cementation for crowns
Position: 6 Anteriors Substrate: Tooth Indication: Crown Restoration Material: Zirconia
Recommendation: Self-adhesive resin cement
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- Crown preparation on the right central incisor.
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- Sandblasting of the zirconia crown. No primer required.
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- Application of 3M™ RelyX™ Universal Resin Cement into the zirconia crown.
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- Crown seating and light curing.
Case 2b: Total-etch adhesive resin cementation for veneer
Position: 6 Anteriors Substrate: Tooth Indication: Veneer Restoration Material: Glass Ceramic
Recommendation: Adhesive resin cement
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- Veneer preparation on the left central incisor.
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- Etching of the glass ceramic veneer with hydrofluoric acid.
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- Application of 3M™ Scotchbond™ Universal Plus Adhesive to the bonding surface of the veneer followed by air drying.
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- Total-etch of the left central incisor’s enamel surface with phosphoric acid.
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- Application of 3M™ Scotchbond™ Universal Plus Adhesive to the left central incisor followed by air drying.
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- Application of 3M™ RelyX™ Universal Resin Cement to the veneer.
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- Final situation after 2 months.
Case 3: Selective-etch adhesive resin cementation for onlay
Position: Molar Substrate: Tooth Indication: Onlay Restoration Material: Glass Ceramic
Recommendation: Adhesive resin cement
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- Onlay preparation.
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- Lithium disilicate onlay: hydrofluoric acid etching of the bonding surface. The external surface is protected with wax.
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- Application of 3M™ Scotchbond™ Universal Plus Adhesive as a silane followed by air drying.
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- Selective enamel etching with 3M™ Scotchbond™ Universal Etchant after cleaning of the preparation with 50 μm alumina.
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- Prepared tooth surface with 3M™ Scotchbond™ Universal Plus Adhesive after air-drying. No light-curing.
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- Application of 3M™ RelyX™ Universal Resin Cement.
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- Final situation.
Case 4: Self-adhesive cementation on composite core build-up for crown
Position: Premolar Substrate: Post & Core Indication: Crown Restoration Material: Zirconia
Recommendation: Self-adhesive resin cement
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- Initial situation with 3M™ Filtek™ One Bulk Fill Restorative core build-up.
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- Sandblasting of the 3M™ Lava™ Esthetic Fluorescent Full-Contour Zirconia Crown.
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- Excess clean-up of 3M RelyX Universal Resin Cement after tack-curing.
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- Final situation.
Dental cementation success depends on information from laboratory
The pre-treatment of the restoration’s bonding surface and the dental cement choice are highly dependent on the type of dental restorative material in use. Therefore, it is essential that the partner in the dental laboratory specifies the material class when shipping a restoration to the dental office for placement. Moreover, dental practitioners should be informed about any pre-treatment of the bonding surface carried out in the laboratory, like sandblasting or etching with hydrofluoric acid, to provide optimal bonding conditions.
Any pre-treatment of the bonding surface is ideally performed after try-in and possible intraoral adjustments, because saliva contaminates the surface, so cleaning and reconditioning are always required. Repeated conditioning, however, might weaken the structure of the restorative material, and some cleaning solutions may produce unwanted interactions with the materials used. Hence, the restoration should either be sent back to the laboratory after try-in for conditioning, or the pre-treatment should be performed in the office immediately prior to cementation. Whenever larger adjustments are necessary, the laboratory should be involved.
Laboratory – office communication may be facilitated by using the cementation guide to be completed by the dental technician in charge. Filled out completely, it contains all the essential information about the restorative material, the pre-treatment and the ideal cement category to be used.
Download this dental cementation guide and more helpful documents on the Success Simplified website
Conclusion of cementing teeth
Teeth cementation of CAD/CAM restorations can be easy if the number of products used is reduced and the indications are clearly defined. Regarding dental restoration materials, it is necessary to focus on two material properties – their strength and the presence of glass particles – to decide which pre-treatment and cement to use. Other factors influencing the cement choice are the retentiveness and size of the bonding surface, the tooth position in the mouth, as well as the substrate the restoration will be bonded to. Theoretically, it is also possible to use an adhesive resin cement every time, which would simplify selection even more, but make some of the clinical procedures more complex.
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Choose the dental cement material that fits your need with the help of our overview.
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A representative will schedule an in-office or a virtual demo.
No purchase necessary.
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Dental cementation
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Achieve better outcomes by simplifying your indirect restoration workflow.
Explore guidelines, case studies and clinical recommendations.
