When a tooth needs a restoration, we can often use CAD/CAM technology. The letters "CAD/CAM" stand for computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing.
We can use this technology to custom-design and fabricate tooth-colored restorations, crowns, onlays, inlays, or veneers, all in one appointment. CAD/CAM restorations are often the best choice for a healthy, beautiful, and natural-looking smile.

The procedure

Our first step is to numb the area to make you comfortable. Depending on the situation, we may also use a rubber dam to protect your mouth while we work. Materials are placed
in milling machine. The result is a beautiful smile. We remove any decay and shape the tooth with the hand piece. Next a reflective powder is applied to the prepared tooth. This allows the equipment to "see” the precise contours of the prepared tooth. We then take a digital image, using a special optical infrared camera that records the tooth's exact dimensions on the CAD/CAM computer. Using this image and the specialized computer software, we carefully design the restoration. We then select the appropriate material in the proper shade for your specific tooth. This material is placed in the milling machine, which shapes it into a custom-fitted restoration.

We then try in the new restoration. We add any custom coloring as needed, bond or cement the restoration in place, and polish it to a beautiful luster. Last, we check your bite and make any final adjustments.

The benefits of CAD/CAM restorations
CAD/CAM restorations have several advantages.

- They are very accurate.
- Only a minimal amount of tooth preparation is needed, leaving more of the healthy tooth structure intact.
- They usually require only one appointment, even when we're working on more than one tooth.
- The restorations are made of tooth-colored materials.