tips and tricks

I have had multiple instances of rubber dam clamps getting stuck on the tooth as it is difficult to insert the tips of the forcep back into the  holes when it is time to remove the dam. The problem usually arises when the holes of the rubber dam clamp are angled towards each other which hinders penetration by the rubber dam forcep tips as the angled hole is not the same size as the forcep tip. I commonly see this on when the clamp is overstretched with the bending of the clamp bow changing the angle between the flat sides of the clamp. It is also more common in clamp designs that have the points of the clamp pointing downwards as the flat sides have a preexisting slope to them (Figure 1). Occasionally, teeth that have bulbous crowns and recession will have a clamp that sits more apically on the tooth, the clamp will be closed further and the contour of the tooth crown can hinder access of the forcep tips to the hole. One modification I have seen suggested is to grind back the later...