Cerec Omnicam is the latest generation of Digital CAD/CAM machines which allows for the fabrication of same day crowns and esthetic porcelain veneers without the need for impressions, temporary crowns and dental laboratories
Do you recall a crown or crowns you've had made at your dentist's office where a tooth was numbed and shaped, an impression was taken, a temporary crown was cemented and then you left the office? You had to return to the office in two or three weeks to have the crown fitted and cemented to the tooth. Did you have any problems or sensitivity with the temporary crown?
Unlike this traditional method, Cerec uses a combination of infrared imaging, computer CAD CAM design and a precise milling machine to help complete the entire process is about 2 hours from start to finish - all in one appointment!
We have taken the time and considerable effort over the past ten years to hone our skill in this technically demanding treatment modality so that 99% of all our Cerec same day crowns are accomplished in one appointment.
An infrared camera takes images of the tooth after shaping and a CAD CAM computer program immediately downloads the images creating three-dimensional virtual models that can be viewed and manipulated on the computer monitor. The operator in the dental office then uses the program to design the crown or onlay that will replace the missing tooth structure. This usually takes about three to five minutes. Next a porcelain block is selected, is inserted into a milling machine and the software program sends a signal to the milling machine to create the design in porcelain. This takes about 13 to 18 minutes. Once completed, the crown is polished, tried in the mouth, adjusted and bonded into place. The entire process takes about 2 hours and there is a period of about ½ hour for design and milling that can be used to accomplish other needed dental work.
The process of manufacturing a metal base lab crown involves significant amounts of expensive consumable materials beginning with impression materials in the dental office, continuing through model making devices and materials and on to alloys of metal that are increasingly costly followed by use of firing ovens, casting machines and the like. Most of these materials are not particularly biodegradable. With Cerec, there is a very limited amount of disposable material needed. This helps lower the waste stream, much of it carbon footprint related, as well as the cost.
This technology can be used almost all single crowns. Sometimes where aesthetic results are a high priority, an exact color match of surrounding teeth can be difficult and in these cases a laboratory technician may be able to produce better aesthetics with a laboratory fabricated and stained crown. At the present time, we are not able to build bridges in one appointment with Cerec. In almost all other cases, we would confidently recommend a Cerec crown in place of a laboratory-fabricated crown.