What is CEREC Technology? It is often referred to as one visit dentistry. It consists of 4 simple steps:
- Scanning
- Designing
- Grinding/Milling
- Sintering/Finalisation
Most of the time if you require something made out of porcelain like a crown (cap) we have to send it away to the dental laboratory and wait for it to come back before giving you your final product. However, at Adelaide Dental Centre we have the technology to make two visits into just one!
The appointment takes 60 minutes. During which time the tooth is prepared for the crown like it normally would be. Rather than taking an impression of the tooth to be sent away to the dental laboratory it is scanned with the latest CEREC Technology and a tooth is digitally built to best suit the area. In this way it can be designed to suit the space and the bite best. A shade is then selected that will suit the surrounding teeth. The collected data is then sent to the milling unit and your crown is then masterfully created. Once it is complete it is then cemented onto your tooth and is ready to use. However, just like glue we do recommend you take the first 24 hours easier on the tooth to allow for full setting of the cement to avoid the crown accidentally coming off due to force.
Sometimes rather than a normal white tooth coloured restoration (filling) made from composite resin or glass ionomer cement you may need something called an inlay or onlay placed. These are also made of porcelain and are essentially strong fillings cemented into or onto the tooth. This can also be done using CEREC Technology. Rather than being sent away to the dental laboratory we can do this in one visit at Adelaide Dental Centre.
CEREC Technology is also used to mill crowns from special impressions taken at our sister practice Personal Dental Care. Even though it still requires two visits it does mean that you are able to get your crown sooner than sending it off to a dental laboratory. Our aim is to make things as convenient as possible for your as we value your time as much as our do.
If you would like to know more, please ask one of your friendly dentists today!