How Does The CEREC Machine Work?
The CEREC (Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramics) machine is a dental tool used to make customized ceramic dental restorations in one visit, speeding up a process that typically requires sending a mold of a patient’s teeth to a dental laboratory to get a part made, which can take up to a week and requires multiple trips to the dentist.
CEREC machines produce ceramic onlays, inlays and dental crowns with the use of 3D scans, allowing dentists to provide same-day restorations for patients who need crowns or dental implants.
CEREC machines use 3D-imaging software to make a detailed replication of your teeth. The process begins with your dentist taking X-rays and photographs of your mouth with the CEREC machine, which uses the information received to create a 3D model of your mouth. The Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software then highlights the parts of the model that need to be fixed.
Once the 3D model and the areas that need to be restored have been highlighted, the machine will create the restoration from a solid ceramic block. The machine-created piece will then be color-matched to your natural teeth.
Advantages of CEREC machines
Saves time: More dentists are having CEREC machines installed in their offices because it saves both them and their patients time — for example, if you go to a dentist’s office to get a dental crown and the dentist does not have a CEREC machine, they will have to take a mold of your teeth and send it to a laboratory to get the crown made, and then the dentist will give you a temporary crown until you come back in when the permanent crown arrives to finish the procedure; basically, having a CEREC machine eliminates the waiting period so you do not have to go back a second time.
Accuracy: The CAD technology used by CEREC machines provides the most accurate replication of your tooth, which means the size and shape of the replica will be almost identical to your real tooth.
