It has been suggested that a carving wax pattern might affect the color of heat-pressed dentin core. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influences of carving wax on color of dentin ingot before and after heat-pressing. Seven kinds of carving wax (Inlay wax medium red, Inlay wax medium green, Color wax for enamel, Crown wax, Inlay wax hard, THO wax, Paraffin wax) for wax pattern were used and the color change of dentin ingot (T 2 and A 1) before and after heat-pressing were analyzed based on CIELAB color system. Color wax for enamel and THO wax influenced the color of dentin ingot (T 2, A 1), and Inlay wax hard influenced the dentin ingot A 1 with color difference dE over 3.0. On the other hand, visible color difference dE over 3.0 was not indicated in the heat-pressed dentin ingots fabricated by Inlay wax medium red and Crown wax.
