“I’ve been around teeth my whole life,” laughs Dr. José Gabriel Martinez Colmenares, a Barcelona-based dentist and professor of dentistry.

Dr. José Gabriel Martinez Colmenares

Born and raised in Venezuela, his mother—also a dentist—often took him to the office, or to continuing education courses throughout the world. In addition to practicing, she lectured extensively.

After graduating from dental school himself in Venezuela in 2006, Dr. Martinez Colmenares ultimately decided, due to political and economic conditions in his home country, to start a dental practice in Barcelona, Spain. There, in addition to practicing dentistry several days a week, he also lectures on his dental passion—esthetics—at the world renown Universidad Internacional de Catalunya.

“Not only have I been around teeth my whole life, but I’ve been around Ultradent products my whole life. My mother used Opalescence™ teeth whitening systems in her practice, where I first saw them about 25 years ago, and this many years later I use them too,” says Martinez Colmenares.

But his favorite product, he says, is Ultradent’s award-winning VALO™ Grand curing light (along with its full line of accessory lenses) which Dr. Martinez Colmenares uses almost daily, and considers them essential to his work.

The VALO Grand Curing Light

 “I don’t think there’s a curing light out there that competes with the VALO™ curing light in any of its forms,” he says enthusiastically. “I started using the very first iteration of the VALO light many years ago when it first came out, and the second I got my hands on it, I knew I needed to get another one. When the larger VALO Grand curing light came out, I bought it immediately and I’ve loved it.”

While Dr. Martinez Colmenares uses all of the accessories, he especially loves the PointCure™ lens, since he does a lot of veneers, overlays, inlays, and onlays in his esthetic dental practice.

VALO Grand Curing Light Accessory Lenses

“I love how large the lens is on the VALO™ Grand light because I can always be sure it’s curing my entire restoration. But there are cases where it’s problematic, in that I don’t want it curing interproximal cement. That’s when I use the VALO light’s PointCure lens. It’s very exact.”

VALO Grand PointCure Lens

“My protocol is that right after I place my restoration, I remove some excess cement, I blow air, and then I use the PointCure lens right in the center of the restoration. That way, when I pass the floss interproximally through all the surrounding teeth, there’s no problem.” Adding, “After that, I take off the PointCure lens accessory and use the full lens of the VALO Grand light to cure the entire restoration at the end.”

The PointCure lens isn’t the only accessory Dr. Martinez Colmenares uses frequently in his daily work.

“I love using the ProxiCure™ Ball lens because, despite having a good matrix system, this lens helps me to be sure I can push cure—and that when I remove it, it won’t go anywhere. Then I use the larger lens on the VALO Grand curing light to finish off.”

Valo Grand Curing Light ProxiCure Ball Lens

During a recent dental conference in Madrid, Dr. Martinez Colmenares discovered his latest favorite: the White Light lens.

VALO Curing Light White Light Lens

 “I love the White Light lens because despite having an established protocol for selecting composite that I’m really comfortable with—I even use cross-polarized photography to see which shades integrate the best with the tooth—I still run into situations occasionally where when I start applying composite, my eyes get tired, and I find myself getting lost and not seeing the details I’m supposed to be seeing,” He says, adding “The White Light lens helps me to know if I’m using the right shade in the right place during these critical moments. Furthermore, it helps me double-check my work—which is invaluable for a busy dentist who often, at the end of the day, is fatigued but needs to get their shade matching right.”

Dr. Martinez Colmenares adds, “When I do six or more composite veneers it takes a lot of time and the White Light lens helps me create really consistently beautiful and natural looking esthetic restorations. Even after I’ve been looking in the mouth for hours, and I’m not sure sometimes if I can depend on my tired eyes, the White Light lens comes to the rescue every time. [ . . .] I have a lot of gadgets in my office, but the White Light lens for the VALO Grand Curing light is my current favorite, for sure.”

The TransLume™ Lens is also in frequent rotation at Dr. Martinez Colmenares’ office, which he often uses to detect veneer fissures for repair.

The TransLume Lens

Dr. Martinez Colmenares using the TransLume Lens to detect a fissure on a patient’s veneer.

Dr. Martinez Colmenares is also quick to note that he also gets quite a bit of use out of the Black Light lens as well. “I use it when I have patients coming from other clinics that have had previous orthodontic treatment and are now coming to see me for veneers. The Black Light lens helps me to see any leftover composite from their ortho treatments…so I can remove it and start with a clean slate. It also helps me stay away from touching or drilling the patient’s healthy enamel—something I always try to avoid in the name of minimally invasive dentistry.”

The VALO Grand Black Light Lens

All in all, Dr. Martinez Colmenares says, “From the smaller, original VALO curing light, to the newer VALO Grand curing light, to the newest VALO Grand Curing Light Lenses—they’ve all greatly improved the quality and efficiency of my work, and for that I am grateful!”

Click to learn more about or purchase Ultradent’s VALO Grand Curing Light, and click here to learn more about or purchase the many accessory VALO Grand Curing Light Lenses discussed by Dr. Martinez Colmenares.