Checking the occlusion post restoration

A few tips when checking the occlusion after a restoration.

-Use articulating paper to check the contacts between the upper and lower teeth. Check open and close into MIP first. and after adjusting this to your satisfaction then check excursive contacts. Ask them to move their jaw all the way out to the side past cusp to cusp contact as you aren't sure how far along they may be parafunctioning. Often the bite is fine in normal function but a wide parafunctioner will crack a cusp at night.
-If the tooth or restoration is fragile ensure that you tell them to bite gently first. Say "gently bite" not "bite gently" because by the time you say bite, some people will already be cracking down on your new filling.
-After biting on the articulating paper, get them to bite and stay closed without it in. Check the contralateral tooth and the contact between the anterior teeth before adjusting the bite. This will give you an estimate on how much vertical you need to reduce. Remember the jaw is a hinge and a wide gap on anterior occlusion only requires a small adjustment posteriorly and vice versa.In bruxers you want perfect contact between their preexisting wear facets.
-If you are unsure if the teeth are contacting correctly, place the articulating paper on the opposite side, get them to close and stay closed then give it a tug. This will show you if the contralateral side is in contact. Note that there is a particular thickness to the paper so you have to have multiple methods of checking the bite. The sound it makes when they tap, the fact that it feels comfortable and articulating paper.
-Be cautious in lower molars with significant posterior overbite, the articulating paper will be rubbed along the buccal cusps leaving a linear mark even if there is no contact in this area. Be sure to check the bite without the paper if there are any strange marks out of place. These sites do not need adjustment