With the use of 3D photography and CAD/CAM technology we can create a ceramic restoration in one day. We can create a full-coverage crown without impressions in as little as two hours. See before and after examples below.

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Why should I use CEREC technology for Dental Crowns?

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Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramic ("CEREC") is the process of obtaining traditional dental crowns or partial crowns through the use of newly developed "CADCAM" or Computer Aided-Design and Manufacturing technology to expedite the process of creating crowns as a replacement for a natural tooth.

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Being a relatively new technology used in dentistry, numerous studies have proved that CEREC restorations promote a healthy tooth structure and gum line while delivering the look and feel natural teeth, but with greater levels of longevity and durability.

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Since adopting the use of CEREC technology, Dr. Coulter has the means to deliver optimal levels of dental restoration esthetics, fit and functionality in one appointment. There's simply no downside to using the CEREC system for tooth restorations verses traditional dental processes. It’s fast, effective, and more comfortable than traditional techniques.

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CEREC technology is widely regarded as safest and most effective way to restore a tooth, crown, inlay, onlay or veneers in just a single visit, instead of two or more visits that are often required with traditional dental treatments.

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The most common treatment where CEREC is used is in the field of partial and full coverage crowns. In this case, a dental crown is basically a protective cap that covers a tooth, restoring its size, shape and appearance. A crown may be necessary to strengthen a decaying or cracked tooth, restore a broken tooth, support a tooth with a large filling, or make a cosmetic change. Additionally, crowns are the last step of a root canal. A “partial crown” called an onlay, is Dr. Coulter’s first choice because it saves the good remaining enamel thus keeping the tooth strong.

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To better understand the benefits of CEREC technology, it’s important to understand that the process of receiving a traditional dental crown is more time consuming and invasive in nature, but with reliable results. Next, the materials to be used in the crown need to be selected. These typically involve the selection of a combination of gold, silver, porcelain or other such material that is then fused to the metal, in order to create a strong foundation, accurate fitting and proper alignment with surrounding teeth.

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This older approach to dental crowns is very time intensive, as it involves taking impressions of your mouth with impression material, then providing a temporary crown while waiting weeks for the creation of the crown, followed by yet another appointment that usually requires anesthesia to remove the temporary crown, then placing and seating the new crown correctly.

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Once installed, old fashioned dental crowns are somewhat more likely to be subject to chipping, or the cracking of fused porcelain, owing to the less precise nature of these older processes. In such cases, it’s usually time consuming and fairly expensive to rehabilitate a defective crown, depending on materials selected. In addition, when temporary teeth are utilized during the time periods that crowns are being fabricated at a traditional dental lab, these can come off or cause sensitivity discomfort while waiting for a permanent dental crown restoration.

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Noting these inefficiencies, consider the many benefits of selecting CEREC technology. Dr. Coulter begins a CEREC appointment by creating a computer aided 3-Dimensional Digital Impression of your mouth using a tiny camera to precisely measure the area where the crown will be placed. This approach eliminates the less accurate and time consuming process of placing impression materials in a patient’s mouth in order to create a viable dental impression.

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With CEREC technology, extremely accurate 3-D images are rendered of your existing teeth so as to ensure a close to perfect fit. This approach virtually eliminates costly and time consuming errors that often occur when using a dental mold to obtain a viable dental impression.

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Once Dr. Coulter completes the digital imaging process, he then uses the data obtained to create a Ceramic Crown immediately thereafter with computerized dental milling equipment. During that process, Dr. Coulter ensures that the dental crown is color matched with your other teeth to obtain a replacement that looks and feels like a natural tooth. Once the fabrication of the dental crown is completed, bonding the crown with a comfortable fit only takes a matter of a few minutes.

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Why Use CEREC for Dental Veneers?

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A dental veneer is a thin, custom-made shell that covers the front surface of a tooth for cosmetic reasons. Veneers are an excellent means of improving discolored, poorly shaped or misaligned teeth, and are often used to restore teeth that have suffered from decay, or have been broken, chipped or otherwise malformed.

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The benefits of an onlay (AKA “partial crown”)

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In the case of a dental onlay, sometimes a tooth has suffered damage and is unable to support a lasting dental filling, but yet is not be damaged enough to justify use of a dental crown. In such cases, a dental onlay (otherwise known as a "partial" crown), is used to covers one or more cusps of the entire biting surface of your tooth.

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So to briefly summarize, a successful CEREC crown appointment only requires approximately two hours of your time instead of the two to three weeks most dentists must wait for tradition dental molds to be used to create a viable dental crown. The uncomfortable and time consuming use of dental molding impressions is no longer necessary. There is no temporary or waiting for crowns to be made from old fashioned dental molds. Instead, Dr. Coulter obtains computer aided digital dental impressions of your mouth that are highly precise and accurate, which allows your CEREC onlay or crown to be computer engineered, milled, fabricated and colored in just a few short minutes. The resulting CEREC Crowns are incredibly well made, and both look and feel like a real tooth that can last 10 to 15 years, or even much longer.

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As a result, Dr Coulter is able to perform non-invasive CEREC procedures that deliver outstanding results in just a single office visit. Our patients love the use of CEREC technology and we encourage you to schedule an appointment with Dr. Coulter soon so that you can enjoy the many benefits of CEREC technology for many years to come.

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