Starting with the introduction of restoration treatments such as crowns, implants, and bridges it’s been necessary to form impressions of the patient’s oral structures. These impressions were used to create the restorations that would be used to address the patients missing or damaged teeth. To create these models it was necessary to use an unpleasant-tasting goop that was messy and held in a dental tray that would be set in place over your teeth. For some, this process was merely unpleasant, while those with a sensitive gag reflex could find it difficult or impossible to complete. Digital impressions arrived to change all that by eliminating the need for this messy process.
How Digital Impressions Are Changing The Future of Dentistry
In addition to being messy and unpleasant to use, physical impressions also suffered from a tendency to imperfections and inaccuracies in their modeling. Digital impressions use advanced imaging technology to create a near-perfect representation of your oral structures. This is accomplished by using a wand to take hundreds of small images of the interior of your mouth. Running these images through special ‘stitching’ software results in a 3D Map of your oral cavity that is nearly perfect. As a result, not only are digital impressions involve a much less unpleasant process to create, they do so while generating superior results.
- Comfort: By eliminating the physical medium used to create these impressions, the comfort of the experience is greatly increased. There is no goop, nor are there any uncomfortable trays to put in. Just a simple wand used for taking the measurements.
- Quality: There’s a significant increase in precision when using digital impressions over a physical medium. Bridges, crowns, and other appliances all show superior outcomes when created using digital impressions. Dental implants in particular benefit when combined with digital x-ray technology.
- Cost-Effective: There is no additional cost to receiving a digital impression over a physical one.
- Convenience: Transferring your imaging to another care provider has always been something of a trial. These records used to be stored in a physical form, whether as a cast or a film. These needed to be physically transferred by mail or courier to other providers that needed them. They can now be instantly transferred via digital means without the loss of the original copy.
These benefits represent the reasons that digital impressions are taking modern dentistry by storm. Both the providers and patients alike benefit from the use of this new technology, and the environment benefits as well by reducing the amount of dental waste.
Is It Time For You To Get Digital Impressions Taken?
If you have a restoration procedure coming up, you’ll be needing to receive impressions as part of your preparations. Speak to your dentist about whether they offer digital imaging, and you’ll never have to face the inconvenience of a digital impression again. Just call and schedule a consultation with your provider today to learn what they can do for you and your oral health.
