CLEARWATER, Fla. (Ivanhoe Newswire) — Dentists take thousands of impressions of teeth every year. Many use what’s known as, the goop. But now it’s out with the old and in with a new way to get a good impression of the teeth.
Terry Brown has loved to fish all of his life … but what he hates is going to the dentist.
“Just choking, you know, making you feel like you’re choking,” said Brown.
He can’t stand the goop. It’s like adult Play-Doh dentists have used for years to make impressions of teeth. Well, the goop is gone at one Florida dentist’s office.
Melissa Collard at Dental Arts of Palm Harbor told Ivanhoe, “We do not have to take impressions anymore with all that goop.”
“The scanner just makes things so much better for our patients as far as accuracy, as far as being able to visualize things,” explained Larry Lieberman, DDS at Dental Arts of Palm Harbor.
Dr. Larry Lieberman is talking about the ITero scanner. In a matter of seconds, a patient’s mouth appears.
“Put the camera on and go through the mouth, and we will get pictures of the teeth and we’ll stitch all the teeth together into an arch into a mouth so that we can get a good bite registration. We can get a good rendering of the preparations of the teeth,” explained Dr. Lieberman.
This is a big improvement over the goop’s accuracy, which tends to expand or shrink at the lab.
Dr. Lieberman said, “Sometimes, you have more adjustments than we’d like.”
Brown’s teeth were scanned when he was being fitted for Invisalign. The picture on the left is before the scan. The picture on the right used the scanned impression to create a picture of what Brown’s teeth will look like after he’s done with the Invisalign.
“We’re really at a boom with the kind of things we can do in dentistry. Whether it be scanners, whether it be implants, whether it be lasers,” detailed Dr. Lieberman.
Brown, the avid fisherman loves this new technology hook, line … and scanner.
The cost is the same to the patients with this scanner. There may be some times dentists need to use regular impression materials but Dr. Lieberman said he’s getting to the point where they don’t need regular impressions.
Contributors to this news report include: Emily Maza Gleason, Field Producer, Roque Correa, Editor and Christopher Tilley, photographer.
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NO GOOP DENTIST
REPORT #2565
BACKGROUND: The enamel on the top surface on your tooth is the hardest part of your entire body. Teeth start to form even before you are born. Baby teeth start to form when the baby is in the womb, but they come through when the child is between 6-12 months old. Humans use four different types of teeth (incisors, canine, premolars, and molars) to cut, tear and grind their food. Once you have your permanent teeth, make sure you take good care of them. No two people have the same set of teeth. They are as unique as your fingerprint. Your mouth produces over 25,000 quarts of saliva in a lifetime, which is enough to fill two swimming pools. Saliva has many uses, including assisting you with your digestion and it protects your teeth from bacteria. An average person spends 38.5 days brushing their teeth over their lifetime. Many diseases are linked to your oral health, including heart disease, osteoporosis, and diabetes.
(Source: https://www.123dentist.com/10-fun-facts-about-teeth/)
WHY DENTAL IMPRESSIONS?: A dental impression is an imprint of hard teeth and soft tissues in the mouth from which a cast or model can be formed. There are several reasons a dentist might need an impression of your teeth. A few common reasons are: to make a removable partial denture or a complete denture, to make a conventional dental crown, to make bridges or fix partial dentures, or even to analyze the relationship of your jaws. This can be useful for orthodontic treatment as well as an evaluation for oral surgery. They may also need to make a custom mouthguard for protection while playing sports or to wear at night to prevent teeth grinding, to make custom teeth whitening trays, to make oral appliances such as space maintainers, or to know how your teeth look in case you chip or damage one or more so that they can be properly restored to their ideal shape and size.
(Source: https://www.oralanswers.com/why-dentists-need-to-take-impressions-of-your-teeth/)
AN ALTERNATIVE TO DENTAL IMPRESSIONS: Dental impressions are very common procedures used in dentistry, but if you are one of the many patients who absolutely can’t stand to have the traditional impression material sit in your mouth, you will be glad to know that there is an alternative. Digital impression systems take digital “impressions” of the teeth instead of the gooey impression material that’s long been used to obtain the final impression for a crown, bridge, or veneer. Dr. Leonard Tau of the Pennsylvania Center for Dental Excellence introduced the Cadent iTero system into his general dental practice and experienced some positive results. “It eliminates the goopy dental impression material that causes patients to gag and not enjoy their visit,” says Dr. Tau. “It also allows for a better-fitting final restoration, which in turn allows for a faster appointment, and the patient thus spends less time in the dental chair.” When your dentist has completely prepared the teeth that require restoration, a wand is used to take a digital image of the teeth. Dr. Tau explains that taking a digital impression of prepared teeth takes approximately a minute and a half, and an impression of the teeth in the opposite arch takes a mere 45 seconds.
(Source: https://www.verywellhealth.com/digital-versions-of-dental-impressions-1059374)
* For More Information, Contact:
Larry Lieberman, DDS
(727) 785-8017
