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The phrase “digital dentistry” covers several distinct technologies that are often bundled together in marketing but work differently and serve different clinical purposes. Understanding what each technology actually does helps patients evaluate what a clinic’s digital workflow means for the quality and speed of their treatment.
The Intraoral Scanner: Where Digital Starts
Every digital fabrication workflow begins with a digital scan of the mouth rather than a physical impression. At Dazzle, the 3Shape TRIOS 5 intraoral scanner captures a three-dimensional model of the prepared teeth and surrounding anatomy in real time. The scan takes 2–4 minutes for a full arch. It is more comfortable than traditional alginate impressions (no tray, no gagging), and the resulting digital model is more dimensionally stable than a physical impression that can distort during transport or pouring.
The digital model is immediately available for design — no laboratory courier, no delay while the model is poured and trimmed. The same scan data is archived and retrievable for future treatment planning.
CAD/CAM Milling: Subtraction from Ceramic Blocks
CAD (computer-aided design) software is used to design the restoration from the scan data. The clinician and lab technician review the design together — adjusting occlusal contacts, emergence profile, and shade characterisation before any material is committed. The design file is sent to the Amann Girrbach milling machine, which cuts the restoration from a pre-fabricated ceramic block (zirconia or E.max) by removing material — a subtractive process.
Milling time: approximately 20–60 minutes for a single-unit crown. Zirconia crowns require sintering in the Ivoclar Programat furnace after milling (approximately 2 hours) to achieve their final hardness — pre-sintered zirconia is soft enough to mill efficiently, then crystallises to 1000–1200 MPa flexural strength at sintering temperature. E.max crowns are crystallised in the same furnace.
After sintering, the technician characterises the surface — adding staining, glazing, and texture — to match the adjacent natural teeth. This step is not automated and requires skilled technician time. The total in-house timeline from scan to cemented crown: same-day for straightforward zirconia molars; next-day for cases requiring more shade characterisation.
3D Printing: Addition for Provisional and Surgical Applications
The Asiga Max UV 3D printer builds objects by curing photopolymer resin layer by layer. This additive process produces objects faster and at lower material cost than milling ceramic blocks, but the materials are different. Printed resin composites have flexural strength of approximately 100–150 MPa — adequate for provisional crowns, temporary bridges, orthodontic models, and surgical guides, but not for permanent posterior restorations requiring the strength of ceramic.
At Dazzle, 3D printing is used for: surgical guides for implant placement (designed from CBCT + scan data, printed in 2–3 hours); provisional crowns and bridges for healing periods (printed from pre-surgical design, fitted at the time of surgery); study models for treatment planning and patient communication; and orthodontic appliances.
Why In-House Changes What Patients Experience
When the lab is external, a misfit at try-in means the restoration goes back in a box, the patient wears a temporary for another week, and the adjustment returns. When the lab is in the same building, the adjustment is made to the digital design and the restoration is re-milled in under an hour. For patients with a fixed departure date, this difference between same-building and external-lab is the difference between receiving their final crown and leaving with a provisional.
FAQs
Q1: What is the difference between a milled and a 3D-printed crown in terms of durability?
Milled ceramic (zirconia: 1000–1200 MPa; E.max: 400 MPa) significantly outperforms printed resin composite (100–150 MPa) for permanent restorations under occlusal load. For posterior crowns, milled ceramic is the appropriate permanent material. Printed resin is appropriate for provisional restorations and specific low-load anterior cases.
Q2: How accurate is the TRIOS 5 intraoral scanner?
The TRIOS 5 has a documented trueness (mean deviation from reference) of approximately 5–10 microns for single-tooth scans. Clinical marginal gap for restorations produced from TRIOS data is consistently within the 50–100 micron range considered clinically acceptable for cemented restorations.
Q3: Can I see the digital design before my crown is milled?
Yes. For crowns and veneer cases at Dazzle, the design is reviewed with the clinical team before fabrication is initiated. For complex aesthetic cases or full-arch smile designs, the patient reviews the 3D design and provides approval before any material is committed to milling.
Q4: Does a digital workflow cost more than a conventional one?
The equipment costs are higher, but the elimination of external lab fees, courier costs, and the additional appointment time required for provisional-and-return workflows means the total patient cost is comparable or lower in many cases. For international patients, the compression of the treatment schedule by eliminating external lab turnaround time has a clear value that is difficult to quantify in isolation.
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