Same day crowns.
Imagine a dental practice where you can go and have your new false tooth made and fitted during a single visit and within an hour. This is what CEREC technology by Sirona Dental Systems UK has made possible.
What is CEREC?
CEREC is a revolutionary system that enables us to design, fabricate and fit a new crown, veneer, onlay or inlay in a single visit, a procedure that would normally take at leastone week, if not more!
CEREC computerised design unit (left), and milling unit (right).
How does this CEREC technology work?
Your dentist will prepare your tooth in the same way they would before fitting a crown or a veneer. At this point, instead of using "dental putty" to take an impression of your tooth, a digital image is taken using a special camera. This image is then converted into a 3D computerised model of your tooth, which is used as a guide to design your new restoration. Once your dentist is happy with the newly designed tooth, this data is sent to an onsite milling machine, which fabricates your new tooth from a high-quality ceramic block. The milling process can take anywhere from as little as 6 minutes to 30 minutes depending on the exact technology and complexity of the tooth. The latest CEREC MCXL machine can mill a crown in as little as 6 minutes.
The ceramic blocks come in a wide variety of shades and colours, and your tooth will be selected to match your surrounding teeth. Once the crown or veneer has been milled, the dentist may characterise it and stain it to match your surrounding teeth, before either polishing it or glazing it in a furnace. Your new restoration will then be cemented into place onto your prepared tooth.
Large metal fillings replaced with CEREC fillings.