January 2019 – CFAO at the University of Montpellier
An AO News Special Report – January 2019
Did you say CAD/CAM?
Much has changed since François Duret’s seminal thesis on optical impressions—and, in fact, the invention of CAD/CAM in dentistry.
For many years, CAD/CAM technology was associated with the Cerec system. Its primary purpose was to fabricate ceramic restorations at the chairside, intended to be cemented in place to partially or fully reconstruct damaged teeth. At the same time, in the early 2000s, the “Procera” system introduced practitioners to laboratory-based CAD/CAM technology and new materials. Today, CAD/CAM seems ubiquitous; it’s impossible to open a professional journal without seeing it “on the front page.” More and more practitioners are asking themselves:Is it time to “switch” to optical impressions? Should I integrate CAD/CAM into my practice? How?Read the introduction
The topic is certainly ambitious in 2018; it has a certain air of the past about it (Fig. 1). I would even go so far as to say that it has become a “pleonasm,” because how can one separate dentistry, aesthetics, and digital technology in the modern world? Until 1970, dentistry was associated only with Art with a capital A. Today, science—with digital technology at the forefront—is making a dramatic entrance into the field, and that’s great news for those of us who love our profession. That shouldn’t prevent us from approaching it with a certain degree of perspective. That’s what we’ll be doing, together with you.Article
Introduction
Current adhesive techniques allow for a more conservative approach to restorative and aesthetic treatments; they have led to a real change in our daily practices. Combined with the therapeutic gradient, digital technology in dentistry and aesthetics is a “new” factor that is growing in importance, even though this technology was invented in 1973 by François Duret. More and more restorations are now being performed using optical impressions. (Figs. 15 and 30).Article
This patient was treated at the Dental Care Center at Montpellier University Hospital
Reason for consultation
The patient was referred to the prosthodontics department for a temporary yet esthetic and long-lasting restoration on tooth 22. It was decided to place a bonded ceramic veneer. This will serve as a temporary solution while the patient’s anterior diastema is treated with orthodontics and orthognathic surgery, once the patient’s vertical growth is complete.Read the article
Ceramic blocks for direct CAD/CAM machining
In 1985, the first CAD/CAM (1)-fabricated inlay was milled from a block of feldspathic ceramic (Vita Mark I) (2). Since the 1980s, various systems have been developed and have subsequently evolved through a series of software programs and equipment (3), (4). Today, these systems make it possible to mill inlays, onlays, veneers, crowns, and even bridges and implant abutments (5). Initially, the materials had to be sufficiently strong while remaining easy to mill. Feldspathic ceramics were ideally suited for the fabrication of small occlusal inlays (CEREC 1) (2).Article