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The most visible aspect of Dazzle Dental Clinic’s in-house digital laboratory is speed. Patients who expect to wait 10–14 days for a crown — because that is what they have been told at other clinics — are surprised when their crown is delivered the same day or the following morning. But the patient experience benefits of the digital workflow extend beyond turnaround time, and understanding the full picture helps patients get the most from their treatment.
No Physical Impressions
Traditional dental impressions involve a tray filled with alginate or polyvinylsiloxane material pressed over the prepared teeth and held in place for 2–3 minutes while it sets. The process is uncomfortable for patients with a sensitive gag reflex, and the resulting physical impression can distort during removal, transport, and the time elapsed before it is poured into a stone model at the laboratory.
The 3Shape TRIOS intraoral scanner replaces this entirely. A small wand is moved around the prepared area; the scanner captures a three-dimensional model in 2–4 minutes of scanning time with no impression material. The digital model does not distort, does not degrade over time, and is immediately available for design review. It is also stored permanently and retrievable for any future treatment planning — if a crown needs replacement in 15 years, the original preparation data is available.
Seeing the Design Before Fabrication
For crown cases, the restoration is designed in CAD software from the intraoral scan. For smile makeover cases involving multiple veneers or a full-arch prosthesis, this design phase is more extensive — the technician and prosthodontist design the full aesthetic outcome digitally before any tooth is prepared or any material is committed.
Patients can review this digital design on screen before fabrication begins. For patients who are particular about their aesthetic result — tooth shape, length, midline position — this is the moment to request changes. Changing a digital design takes minutes. Changing a physical ceramic restoration that has already been glazed takes days and involves remake costs. The ability to review and approve the design before fabrication is the most under-appreciated advantage of the digital workflow for aesthetic cases. For more on the fabrication specifics, see our Dream Dental Studio technical guide.
Fewer Appointments for International Patients
The conventional external lab workflow for a crown requires: preparation appointment → provisional fitting → return appointment to cement the permanent crown. That is a minimum of two appointments spread over 7–14 days. For a patient travelling from the UK, Australia, or the UAE, a 14-day gap between appointments is not a scheduling inconvenience — it is a logistical impossibility without extending the trip.
With the in-house lab, the preparation and delivery of the final crown happen within the same visit window. For straightforward posterior crowns: same-day. For complex cases requiring design review and shade matching: next-day. For full-arch prosthetics where the provisional is pre-fabricated: the day of surgery. International patients visiting for a week can complete restorative work that would otherwise require two trips. For the complete international patient protocol, see our dental tourism guide.
Quality Control at Every Stage
When a restoration is fabricated externally, the dentist receives the finished product and either accepts or returns it. There is one quality check — at delivery. When fabrication is in-house, the quality checks are continuous: the scan quality is confirmed before design begins; the design is reviewed by the prosthodontist before milling; the milled restoration is inspected before sintering; the sintered restoration is inspected before characterisation; and the final restoration is checked before cementation. Each check is an opportunity to identify and correct a problem before it reaches the patient.
FAQs
Q1: Can I get a crown in one appointment at Dazzle?
For single-unit posterior zirconia crowns: in most cases, yes. The preparation, scan, design, milling (20–60 min), sintering (2 hours, scheduled around the appointment), and cementation occur on the same day. For anterior crowns requiring extensive shade characterisation: the characterisation and glaze appointment is typically the next morning.
Q2: What if the crown doesn’t fit correctly when it is tried in?
The digital design is adjusted and the crown is re-milled. This takes less than an hour in most cases. At Dazzle, same-day remakes are managed within the appointment without the patient needing to return another day.
Q3: Is the digital scan less accurate than a physical impression?
For single-tooth and small-span restorations: digital scans are consistently equivalent or superior to physical impressions in dimensional accuracy. For full-arch scans covering the complete arch: accuracy depends on scanning technique and the scanner model. The TRIOS 5 is among the most accurate full-arch intraoral scanners currently available for clinical use.
Q4: Can the digital design of my smile makeover be shown to me before any teeth are touched?
Yes, and at Dazzle this is standard for smile makeover cases. The digital smile design (DSD) process involves facial photography, video, and intraoral scanning — all non-invasive — from which a digital preview of the planned outcome is generated. Patients review and approve this before any tooth preparation occurs. The preview can also be produced as a physical mock-up (temporary composite applied to the unprepared teeth) so the patient can evaluate the shape in their mouth before committing.
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