What is CEREC?
If you’ve ever had a toothache, you know that it can be some of the worst pain you’ll ever experience. It hurts to eat or do pretty much anything. All you can think about is the discomfort in your mouth. Tooth pain is an inconvenience in your daily life, plus delaying treatment can make your situation even worse. All you want to do is get the affected tooth fixed as quickly as possible.
Thanks to CEREC technology, you can have your damaged or decayed tooth restored quickly with CEREC same day crowns. Read on to learn more about this option if you are struggling with a toothache.
Chairside Economical Restorations of Esthetic Ceramic (CEREC®) has revolutionized dental procedures. Traditionally, if crowns, onlays, inlays, or dental veneers were required to restore damaged teeth, multiple procedures and a great deal of waiting time in-between would be inevitable. CEREC® creates these ceramic restorations within minutes in the dental office. This means that many cosmetic treatments can be completed in just a single visit.
CEREC® is comprised of several computer-assisted design (CAD) tools and a milling machine that creates custom ceramic restorative devices. CEREC® can benefit almost anyone needing a ceramic restoration. This is of great benefit to nervous patients, and it can also reduce the cost of treatment.
You may think that creating a crown in one day may be complicated, but it’s actually quite easy for your dentist to design a CEREC same-day crown. All the dentist needs to do is capture digital images of your teeth and the CEREC system does the rest. It will create your custom ceramic crown in a single visit.
Why Do You Need a Crown?
A dental crown is a cap that is placed over a tooth. Not all teeth require crowns, but one or more of your teeth may require one if they need a little extra protection. A dental crown can keep your teeth intact, prevent further oral health issues, and help you eat with ease. Some reasons why you might need a crown include:
- Restoring a tooth after a root canal
- Treating severe tooth decay
- Covering up severely discolored teeth
- Correcting broken or misshapen teeth
- Covering worn-down teeth
How Can CEREC Benefit Me?
CEREC® can benefit almost anyone needing a ceramic restoration. Exceptions include patients who have a prior history of breaking ceramic devices and those with a deep bite. CEREC® devices are proven to last for over 5 years, but recent research indicates that most CEREC®-created restorations last for more than 10 years.
Additional advantages associated with CEREC® include:
- No temporary restorations
- High-quality ceramic products
- Minimal invasiveness
- Fewer injections and discomfort
- Fewer dental visits
- Cost-effectiveness
- More of the natural tooth is saved
- Long lasting restorations
- Biocompatible solutions
What Is the CEREC System Comprised Of?
The CEREC® System is sometimes called a CAD-CAM system. CAD-CAM means Computer Assisted Design and Computer Assisted Milling. The CEREC® system has three major components:
This device is home to a high-quality camera and a medical-grade computer. The function of this unit is to photograph the prepared tooth. Three-dimensional images are created of the tooth on the screen, which the dentist uses to design the perfect ceramic restoration.
This software allows the dentist to examine the tooth from every angle. It is the closest possible thing to holding the tooth in the hands and rotating it.
This unit actually manufactures the custom restoration from the specifications entered into the computer. A ceramic block that best resembles the existing tooth color is chosen and placed into the unit. Within minutes, the milling device produces the restoration the dentist designed.
What Does a CEREC Restoration Procedure Involve?
The first step in the procedure is preparing the tooth for restoration. Depending on your particular case, the dentist will take photos of your affected teeth using one of CEREC’s® two imaging solutions. If using CEREC® Omnicam, the dentist will take several images of the tooth, sending a three-dimensional, colored model to the CEREC® machine. If using CEREC® Bluecam, the dentist will coat the teeth with a contrasting agent before taking images of your teeth.
These images are transposed onto the computer screen, where the dentist will view the tooth from every angle and design the final restoration. When the design is complete, it will be transmitted to the milling unit. The dentist will insert a block of ceramic, matching your tooth color, into the milling machine which will then create the full crown, onlay, inlay, or veneer. Before affixing the restoration to the tooth, the dentist will perform a dry fit to ensure comfort. Once a perfect fit is established, the restoration will be polished and affixed to the tooth with dental cement.
If you have questions about CEREC® or would like to obtain more information on this innovative technology, please contact our cosmetic dentist in Littleton. Call (303) 933-2522 or contact us online today.