CEREC patient benefits

At the beginning of 2019, we launched the CEREC 3 system at iStomatolog clinics. This system allows us to produce ceramic dental crowns, inlays, bridges in 1 day. But, we are faced with the fact that many patients are not aware of such technology. Therefore, we will talk about how the creation of a dental crown with the CEREC system occurs. How crowns are created without using this system. What are the pros and cons of CEREC.

What is the CEREC dental restoration system?

CEREC is a method that allows using a special camera (scanner), software and a milling machine to obtain a high-quality dental crown, tab or bridge (from zirconium oxide, metal, ceramic or hybrid blanks) in just one visit to dentistry. CEREC is translated as “a device for an economical and aesthetic ceramic restoration”, produced by the
German company SIRONA Dental Systems, one of the world leaders in the production of dental equipment.

Using CEREC, we can produce a dental crown without going to a dental laboratory, without taking analog casts and without using temporary prosthetic components, which saves time. The doctor, together with the patient, controls the entire process of manufacturing the restoration and its quality.
From the beginning to the final result.

The digital impression and the future shape of the crown are stored on our server for a long time. In case, for example, of a broken crown. That is, in case of breakdown, restoration (tooth crown or bridge), the patient needs to go to the clinic and by his arrival a crown or bridge will be made in a very short time.

Thanks to the continuous improvement of equipment and software development, the quality and speed of manufacturing dental restorations with CEREC has become a kind of standard in dentistry.

How crowns were made before (before CEREC)

1. The clinical stage. Preparation of the tooth for restoration (the tooth is treated and prepared), whether it is a crown or a bridge.
   Impressions are removed from the jaws with special masses. The manufacturers of these masses also did not stand still and developed their product. In the 20th century, plaster for impression taking was still encountered, then more pleasant material from agar-agar (alginate) appeared, a little later silicones appeared, first C-silicone, then A-silicone. Well, now polysiloxanes and polyesters. These are good materials, but have a number of disadvantages. The main ones are shrinkage of materials (further on the restoration) and inconvenience for patients with increased vomiting reflex.
2. Laboratory stage. Making plaster models and modeling wax for future restoration, which also gives a little shrinkage.
   Casting, polymerization or pressing of future restoration (depending on the type of construction). And again, we get either shrinkage or a certain expansion coefficient, that is, as a result, not perfectly accurate work.
3. The clinical stage. Correction, fitting, fixing the structure.

All this briefly described process in clinics where there is no CEREC takes 7 to 14 days and the patient needs to visit the dentist at least 3-4 times.

How crowns are made with CEREC

1. The clinical stage. Exactly the same as in the analogue method, preparing a tooth for restoration, whether it be a crown or a bridge.
   Digital imprinting is an intraoral 3D scan with a special camera, which is part of the CEREC system. That is, we take a digital impression and immediately, due to the software, we get virtual 3D models on which we see the processed teeth, gums, and all this in color in all projections.
2. These models, or rather their three-dimensional image, are transmitted via software to a grinding or milling unit, which can also be part of the CEREC system.
3. We fix the finished crowns on the patient’s tooth.

The whole process takes from 20 minutes to 3 hours, depending on the material used and the required number of crowns or bridges. The digital impression and the future tooth crown will be stored on our computer for a long time, in case of accidental breakdown.

What can we do with CEREC?

Upon receipt of the impression, we can determine supraocclusion (tooth congestion) and thereby prevent pathological abrasion by making future restorations. The program is displayed in red areas.

When modeling teeth (future restorations), we can, together with the patient, select the size, shape and color of the teeth, accurately determine the border of the restoration edge, use the camera to diagnose carious and non-carious lesions, get 3D-casts of healthy teeth and save them in the database so that in order to make an exact copy of the crown in the future, copy the teeth from the opposite side and make exact functional copies.

The manufacture of crowns using CEREC minimizes the errors and inaccuracies that are inherent in the classical (analog) method, which allows to achieve accuracy up to 50 microns (approximately the diameter of a human hair), which meets the requirements of world standards in dentistry.