CAD/CAM Restorations
What is the history of CAD/CAM usage in Dentistry?
CAD/CAM was invented in the mid 1980s, but it was very cumbersome, and something of a luxury that took exorbitant expenses and time to produce results. It could only be used in select dental laboratories. Over time, the advances in computer technology and software made chair side CAD/CAM restorations possible. This new procedure lets dentists create dental prosthetic restorations in a matter of hours.
Many dentists feel it benefits the patient to have everything done in one dental visit. It does away with the need to fit the patient with a temporary crown and have to return for a second visit where the permanent crown is placed.
However, this can make a dental visit very expensive as well. If we were to have a CAD/CAM machine in our office, we would have to charge you more to cover the cost of maintaining it. We prefer to save you some money by doing what we can to lower your dental bills somewhat. We therefore outsource the actual CAD/CAM machining of your cosmetic dental restorations to a partner dental lab. True, you do have to come back for a second visit, but you get the superior results at a more affordable rate than you would if we did everything in-house.
What factors determine the cost?
The cost of CAD/CAM restoration depends on several factors:
· The type of restoration we are creating
· The material we use to create the restoration
· The cosmetic expectations of the dentist
· What your dental insurance is willing to cover and not cover
What type of cosmetic dental work can you do with CAD/CAM technology?
We can build cosmetic dental crowns, dental bridges, and dental implants. CAD/CAM is very useful in doing full mouth restorations that combine advanced dental bridgework with selective use of dental implants as anchor points for bridges.
Will the finished product be strong and cosmetic?
Yes. CAD/CAM restorations are normally all porcelain. They look like natural teeth, and they can withstand normal biting forces just like real teeth do. All-porcelain crowns do not have the metal core of previous generations of crowns, which makes them look practically identical to tooth enamel.
It is also healthier for your gums, because the crown sits just above the gum line with no metal to irritate the tissue.
How does the CAD/CAM restoration process done at the Houston Medical Center Dental Group?
We start by making you feel comfortable. Our standard procedure is to numb the area around your tooth so you will not feel any pain while we work on it. We also place a shield called a rubber dam across the back of your mouth that protects your esophagus and trachea from any dental debris that may fall into your throat during the removal of decay can the reshaping of your tooth surface.
Next, we remove decay and shape the tooth with a dental handpiece. We apply a reflective powder to the tooth and take a digital image of it. These images are then sent to the lab, where the CAD/CAM computer can see the most subtle of tooth surface contours and determine the dimensions of an exact replica of the tooth.
The lab feeds all this data into a milling machine that creates a custom-fitted restoration. When this is sent back to our office, we call you in and make sure you CAD/CAM restoration fits. We color it appropriately to match its appearance to surrounding teeth. We check your bite and make all necessary final adjustments, and then we bond your restoration permanently in place.
CAD/CAM was invented in the mid 1980s, but it was very cumbersome, and something of a luxury that took exorbitant expenses and time to produce results. It could only be used in select dental laboratories. Over time, the advances in computer technology and software made chair side CAD/CAM restorations possible. This new procedure lets dentists create dental prosthetic restorations in a matter of hours.
Many dentists feel it benefits the patient to have everything done in one dental visit. It does away with the need to fit the patient with a temporary crown and have to return for a second visit where the permanent crown is placed.
However, this can make a dental visit very expensive as well. If we were to have a CAD/CAM machine in our office, we would have to charge you more to cover the cost of maintaining it. We prefer to save you some money by doing what we can to lower your dental bills somewhat. We therefore outsource the actual CAD/CAM machining of your cosmetic dental restorations to a partner dental lab. True, you do have to come back for a second visit, but you get the superior results at a more affordable rate than you would if we did everything in-house.
What factors determine the cost?
The cost of CAD/CAM restoration depends on several factors:
· The type of restoration we are creating
· The material we use to create the restoration
· The cosmetic expectations of the dentist
· What your dental insurance is willing to cover and not cover
What type of cosmetic dental work can you do with CAD/CAM technology?
We can build cosmetic dental crowns, dental bridges, and dental implants. CAD/CAM is very useful in doing full mouth restorations that combine advanced dental bridgework with selective use of dental implants as anchor points for bridges.
Will the finished product be strong and cosmetic?
Yes. CAD/CAM restorations are normally all porcelain. They look like natural teeth, and they can withstand normal biting forces just like real teeth do. All-porcelain crowns do not have the metal core of previous generations of crowns, which makes them look practically identical to tooth enamel.
It is also healthier for your gums, because the crown sits just above the gum line with no metal to irritate the tissue.
How does the CAD/CAM restoration process done at the Houston Medical Center Dental Group?
We start by making you feel comfortable. Our standard procedure is to numb the area around your tooth so you will not feel any pain while we work on it. We also place a shield called a rubber dam across the back of your mouth that protects your esophagus and trachea from any dental debris that may fall into your throat during the removal of decay can the reshaping of your tooth surface.
Next, we remove decay and shape the tooth with a dental handpiece. We apply a reflective powder to the tooth and take a digital image of it. These images are then sent to the lab, where the CAD/CAM computer can see the most subtle of tooth surface contours and determine the dimensions of an exact replica of the tooth.
The lab feeds all this data into a milling machine that creates a custom-fitted restoration. When this is sent back to our office, we call you in and make sure you CAD/CAM restoration fits. We color it appropriately to match its appearance to surrounding teeth. We check your bite and make all necessary final adjustments, and then we bond your restoration permanently in place.
Labels: CAD/CAM Milling Machine, cad/cam restorations, CAD/CAM System
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