If you are considering undergoing cosmetic dentistry to improve your smile, then you might want to consider Cerec veneers. Dental veneers themselves are thin shell-like pieces of porcelain that are bonded to the front surface of the tooth to hide a wide range of tooth problems. However, dental porcelain veneers using Cerec methods are quicker, more comfortable, and more convenient.
So what exactly does the term Cerec stand for?
The term Cerec is an acronym for ‘Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramics. While that may sound a bit of a mouthful, it means a fully digitalised and convenient way of undergoing the veneers process.
Traditionally, when crowns, inlays, onlays and dental veneers are necessary to restore problem teeth, they require multiple processes, several visits and a great deal of waiting time in between. This means that typically, anyone wanting a conventional dental veneer may have to wait around 3-4 weeks before their permanent veneer is fitted.
Compare that to Cerec veneers, and patients can walk out of a dental clinic with a set of veneers that same day! A Cerec porcelain veneer is beautiful, natural-looking and above all, convenient, meaning the patient has
- No need for temporary restorations
- Less injections and discomfort
- No messy impression-taking and,
- Fewer dental visits
How do Cerec conventional veneers work?
Let’s take a look at the process and compare it step-by-step to conventional veneers…
Step 1 – Trimming the tooth
As with both Cerec and traditional methods, the tooth must be trimmed slightly to ensure a flush fit when the veneer is bonded into position. This is usually less than 1mm in depth (around the thickness of an eggshell) and is the first step in the process.
Step 2 – shade guiding
Again, this is a process that both Cerec veneers and conventional veneers adopt. This is so that the dentist can determine which colour matches your natural smile best.
Step 3 – impression taking
This is where the two processes start to differ. Conventionally a dentist would load a mouth tray with an alginate-like substance – a kind of thick goo – which is then squished over the patient’s teeth and removed some 2-5 minutes later.
The issue with this impression-taking method is that it’s open to error. A patient can fail to register a correct impression for many reasons. When this happens the whole process needs to be started again. At the best of times, this isn’t a particularly pleasant or comfortable procedure; but spare a thought for those patients who have an active gag reflex. Impression taking using this method can be enough to give you nightmares.
Conversely, it’s a different story with the Cerec veneers process because this time, gooey gag-inducing impression trays are replaced with a tool known as an intraoral scanner. As the name suggests, a small hand-held wand is placed in the mouth. It is gently waved over the surface of the teeth digitally scanning the inside of your mouth.
The whole process takes less than 1 minute.
Using computer-aided-design (CAD) technology the scanned images are then transferred to a computer which unscrambles the images and turns them into a virtual and perfectly correct 3D mock-up of your mouth.
Step 4 – Temporary veneer
With a conventional veneer method, patients will have to wait between 1-3 weeks for a porcelain veneer to be customised by the dental laboratory. The question then might be whether or not you decide to be fitted with a temporary veneer in the meantime. In cases where a temporary is fitted, the tooth surface is roughed up and a bonding agent is applied. The temporary veneer is then placed into position.
Often ‘temps’ can take a bit of getting used to as they are slightly thicker than your permanent veneer would be. Also, they aren’t as strong as a permanent veneer, and therefore patients need to consider what they eat and chew in the meantime.
Once the temp is fitted (or not) patients are free to leave the dental clinic and await their permanent replacement.
When it comes to Cerec veneers, this temporary fitting process is skipped altogether because patients will receive their permanent Cerec veneer or veneers that very same day.
Here’s how the process works…
Using computer aided manufacture (CAM) technology the information from your virtual 3D mock-up is then fed into a milling machine situated within the clinic. It sets to work fabricating a perfect porcelain dental veneer out of a small block of ceramic. The process takes just a few minutes to produce. Once produced, your veneer is ready to fit.
Step 5 – final fitting
With conventional veneers, a patient will get the call (usually after several weeks) to be told that their dental veneer has arrived back from the lab. This is the first time you and your dentist will see if it is indeed the perfect fit. However, before fitting, any temporary veneers are removed and the permanent veneer it is placed against the tooth where it is bonded on permanently.
Finally, while Cerec veneers may also need to be shortened, squared off, or rounded slightly until they reach the optimum shape for a perfect smile, the difference between them and traditional veneers, is that all of these adjustments can be made the same day using Cerec technology.
If you would like to find out more about how Cerec technology can benefit you with your dental restorations, then contact No Gaps Dental. We’re a multi-location dental group with 15 locations across the Sydney Metro area.
We offer a combination of traditional cosmetic veneers and Cerec veneers, so why not book an appointment at a No Gaps Clinic near you to find out more. On behalf of the team, we look forward to helping you to achieve your dream smile.