The LAVA Chairside Oral Scanner changes the way we take impressions!

For those of you who went through the process of wearing braces when you were growing up, you may remember one of the most traumatic moments (apart from an errant rubber band flying out of your mouth while talking to someone) was having impressions taken of your teeth.

Dr. Drews explaining lava cos illustration to patient
metal dental impression tray with composite dispenser

Traditional Dental Impressions

There is nothing like the sight of one of those metal (or plastic) horse shoe looking trays filled with dental impression ‘gunge’ (aka composite) coming at your open mouth to bring out a strong gag reflex.

Until more recent developments in dental technology, this has also been the way we have captured information for other restorations as well. For example, impressions are taken to to build crowns (also called “caps”), bridges, and implants.

Imagine a whole generation of adults who thought they had seen the last of those medieval looking trays once they had graduated out of adolescent ortho, only to be faced with them again in their forties after they’ve been told they needed a crown.

Digital Dental Impressions

The Biolase is a self-contained, mobile unit that has a traditional looking hand piece which is attached to a computer (where we are able to adjust the power, water and air settings).

If you were to look closely at the hand piece, it has a fiber optic tip (just like one of the groovy Christmas trees your neighbor growing up used to have) which delivers optical energy, illumination and atomized water spray to the treatment area only.

Precision and accuracy are key in our line of work!

Obviously, the number one benefit to patients is just not having to deal with the drill.

As the dentist, not having to ‘deal with the drill’ actually means less trauma to, and more conservation of, the tooth.

High speed dental drills can cause hairline cracks and fractures which can have a domino effect on later dental problems. They also tend to cause gum tissue issues such as more bleeding and post-operative swelling for the patient.

Come see for yourself!
If we have piqued your interest at the prospect of a “drill-free” dental appointment, just give us a call at (207) 782-5308 or contact us online and we’ll be happy to give you a demo.