Cerec technology allows us to fabricate natural, all porcelain crowns for our patients in a single visit. In the traditional technique for fabricating crowns, teeth are prepared for crowns, an impression of the teeth is taken and sent to the laboratory, and temporary crowns are prepared for the teeth. Patients have to wear their temporaries for a couple of weeks, before returning to have the permanent crown cemented. With Cerec, an optical impression of the prepared teeth is taken immediatedly after preparation using a special, high resolution camera, and the Cerec 3D software designs a crown that fits the prepared teeth. This information is then transmitted to the Cerec milling machine, which fabricates an exact model of the crown in the office within a few minutes.
Obviously, the biggest advantage with Cerec crowns is that patients receive their permanent crowns in a single appointment. They no longer have to wear temporaries for two weeks, and they don't need to come back and receive anesthesia for a second visit. Also, with the Cerec technology, the crown can be designed chairside by the dentist, who can modify the shape and contours of the crown to best fit the prepared tooth.
With time, every dental office will eventually be using Cerec technology for beautiful, metal-free crowns, but for now, only a few offices are offering this technology. We have been successfully using Cerec technology in our Folsom office since February to fabricate all porcelain crowns for our patients.
