What Is Modern Dental Technology?

By R.S. Mayberry, DDS

Dentistry has changed so much over the last thirty years that it is difficult to recognize as the same profession today.

Digital dentistry is where computers are used in dentistry for various reasons. Digital records keeping, instantly viewable x-rays, low dose 3D CT scan x-rays, intra-oral scanning of tooth preparations, in office computer designed crowns that are milled and completed in one visit, digital photos and images, dental lasers, scanned tooth models that can be sent to a laboratory over the internet, are among some of these amazing new technologies commonly used in dental practice today.

Digital crowns made in office make patients experience much more pleasant. They don't need to come back for second crown placement appointment, there is no second injection of Novocain, and no temporary crown is needed. These digital crowns look just like natural teeth because there is no ugly dark metal line at the gum. They fit better than the old crowns from the dental lab, and are much stronger too. The better they fit and the stronger they are, the longer they last.

Digital CT scans allow for a 3D view of the upper and lower jaws. This technology allows for virtual surgical planning before the actual implant placement, identifying all the important anatomical considerations in advance of surgery and eliminates the surprises previously discovered at surgery that are faced without this valuable tool.

Replacing natural teeth with dental implants that are much stronger, do not decay, and which can potentially last a lifetime, is the greatest technological advance in dental history. Technology is a wonderful tool that can be used to allow dentists to become more efficient and productive. Technology is great, but it must be recognized for what it is, a tool, it is not a substitute for good judgment and most importantly, experience.