Kingsport, TN

If you’ve ever needed a dental restoration — a crown, bridge, veneer or retainer, for instance — then you may recall a putty-like material that your dentist would put in trays to make impressions of your teeth. Many dentist offices have embraced technological advances and are taking digital impressions now instead. Digital impressions, also called 3-D intramural scanning, are the latest technology to help dentists see a detailed replica of the mouth. With a wand-like tool, dentists are able to take a series of photos or videos of soft and hard tissue in the mouth. Accompanying software compiles the images within seconds and displays a 3D impression on the chair-side computer screen. With just a click of a button, the dentist can send the images to labs like our full-service lab in Kingsport to make dental restorations quickly and accurately.

The advantages of digital impressions over traditional mold material are plenty.

Digital impressions are:

• Less messy and more pleasant for the patient and dental team. Patients with a strong gag reflex or sensitive teeth, in particular, enjoy the far more comfortable procedure.
• Far more accurate than traditional mold material, leading to a smaller margin of error and a marked improvement in the quality of restorations.
• Easier to get right on the first try, thanks to the nature of the software putting together an immediate 3D image of the teeth. Inaccuracies are immediately identified and can be re-scanned in the same sitting. No more goopy retries or ill-fitting restorations.
• More eco-friendly with no plastic trays or other materials needed.
• Far faster than traditional impressions. In fact, the entire procedure usually takes 5 minutes or less.

Full-service dental lab in Kingsport, TN

Modern, cutting-edge technology has created dramatic changes in dental practices, especially restorations. Digital impressions have effectively put an end to dentists’ need to use cumbersome trays and impression materials to make a model of the soft and hard tissue of the mouth. Now, capturing every detail is literally as simple as waving a wand, making the procedure quicker, more accurate and far more comfortable for everyone involved.