Dental crowns are one of the most versatile and commonly used tooth restoratives. They can be used to treat teeth that are chipped, cracked, excessively worn out, or even too weak after undergoing a root canal therapy. They restore both the aesthetics and functionality of the teeth, thereby preventing them from being extracted.
Traditional ceramic crowns have been around for a long time. They are made from ceramic material and exhibit great physical properties. However, the process of getting traditional crowns is quite a tedious one. Initially, the dentist would diagnose your teeth and determine your candidacy for the crown. A mold of the tooth will be taken using a gooey material, which you will have to bite into. After this, you will have to use a temporary crown while the permanent one is being fabricated in the dental laboratory. This would often be ill-fitting and tend to fall off easily. Moreover, you would have to visit the dentist’s office multiple times by the time you get the crown bonded in place. All these drawbacks aren’t present in the case of same-day crowns!
CEREC stands for Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramics. It is a means of fabricating ceramic dental crowns in a very short span of time using highly advanced technology. In fact, CEREC technology can be used to fabricate a crown in just a few hours, as opposed to traditional crowns which take at least a couple of weeks’ time.
CEREC uses a hand-held oral scanning device that uses 3D modeling technology to precisely determine the positions of the teeth. The scanned image of the teeth can be relayed on to a computer screen to determine the extent of the damage the tooth has suffered. The data from these scans will be input to a computer that is connected to the milling machine. CEREC uses CAD/CAM technology to mill out a crown from a piece of solid ceramic. The accuracy obtained from the computerized milling machine is simply amazing and wouldn’t require any physical alterations to be made to the restoration.
Schedule an online appointment or call us at (614) 459-3229 to have a consultation with our dentist, Dr. Peng, and we’ll be able to guide you further.