Gone, A Mouthful Of Dental Impression Goo!
If you have had much dental work or been through braces then chances are you have had impressions of your teeth made. The impressions were done with some sort of gooey semi-solid with the consistency of bathtub caulk or a huge scoop of mashed potatoes. Then you had to sit and hold that material in your mouth for anywhere from 2 minutes to 6 minutes while the material set up. All the while fighting the natural urge to panic, or gag from the mouthful of a very un-natural substance edging down your throat. Sometimes leaning forward and drooling down the patient napkin just to keep your gag reflex in check. Then often times the impression didn’t work and you were told you have to do it again! Oh, the memories!
At McOmie Family Dentistry we got rid of impression material almost 5 years ago. Gone are the memories mentioned above, happy easier days are here. Instead of goo-filled impressions, we have now turned to a new technology called intra oral scanning. What intraoral scanners do is they capture the teeth in a virtual way. Our scanner a Trios scanner by 3 Shape takes photos at a rapid rate and then the computer program uses these images to stitch together a virtual 3-dimensional model. It is truly amazing! Watch this video and you can see what we are talking about.
The Trios scanner by 3 shapes is the best scanner in the world! Other scanners are less expensive but no other scanner brings the technology and sophistication that this scanner brings to McOmie Family Dentistry. We are proud to have such a fine piece of technology right here in Chattanooga.
The Old Way To Do Impressions
Five years ago to take an impression of your teeth we would use a rubber-based material called polyvinyl siloxane (PVS). This process had become the gold standard for taking an accurate and stable dental impression. It was a great process that was accurate. But there were drawbacks to it such as;
- Material had to stay in the mouth for up to ten minutes to set.
- Some materials had a bad sulfur taste.
- If the tooth got wet the impression had to be done over.
- The cost of material is extremely high.
The New Way To Do Impressions
As you can see in the above video this man is scanning himself. Doing a scan on your own mouth is extremely hard to do! You can see how fast he does it and how it is easy because your entire mouth is NOT filled with goo. There is no radiation involved as the scanner is merely taking pictures of his mouth and the program puts them together to form the virtual model. This is a great technique and so much easier than any impression ever was. There are many advantages of the scan’
- A digital scan is more accurate then an impression.
- Digital scans get to the lab instantly there is no mail time or waiting for a courier to pick the impression up.
- Better infection control.
- Scans are used directly into the design software.
- Scans are faster
- Scans are less invasive
- Scans are better for the environment we are not using petroleum-based materials and just throwing it out, also not shipping the impression takes less energy.
- The restoration is of higher quality when we use a scan instead of an impression.
The list could go on and on with the advantages of the scan over the impression. We think mostly the patients love not being gagged by the impression material.
What Can Be Made With A Digital Intra Oral Scan
About everything these days; Crowns, Bridges, Veneers, Implants, Inlays, Onlays, Partials, Dentures, Bite Guards, Night Guards, Sleep Apnea Appliances, Digital Models, Whitening Trays, Invisalign, Clear Correct etc.
This list just keeps on growing and growing. As scanners are used more and more the things we can go with them keep getting longer. In fact the things we can’t do with a scanner you could easily count on one hand. We love our scanner and would be lost without it. We often tell people it is like having a cell phone. When you lose your cell phone it causes you to feel lost. Sure you can get by but when you get it back it makes life easier. If we lost our scanner we would feel lost we could go back to the old way but we can’t imagine doing that. The same way you can’t imagine talking at a payphone bolted to a wall or being stuck in the kitchen to talk on your phone.
Since obtaining a scanner many of our patients have been amazed with the technology. It is fascinating when you see it work and how fast it is. We are on our second scanner we had one for 3.5 years then when Dr. McOmie was at a dental meeting he saw the new version that was wireless. We thought this would be even better for our patients so he got the newer version. The tip that goes into the patient’s mouth on the new scanner is about half the size of the old tip. Making an even better experience for our patients.
Come Get Your Digital Scan!
If you’ve been avoiding important dental work because you didn’t want to go through the impression process, then you’ll love our intraoral scanner! Schedule an appointment with us so we can get you one step closer to the smile you deserve! Give us a call McOmie Family Dentistry 423-899-1112.
