Digital Impression Instead of Impression Material
Digital Impression Instead of Impression Material
The first step is capturing the oral situation. In a digital workflow, this is done via intraoral scanning: a small handheld scanner creates an exact three-dimensional model of teeth, gums, and occlusal relationship — without impression material, without gag reflex, in real time. The digital model is immediately available, can be viewed as many times as needed, and serves as the foundation for all subsequent steps.
CAD: Computer-Aided Design
Based on the digital model, the restoration is designed on the computer (Computer-Aided Design, or CAD). Dental technicians or clinicians design crowns, bridges, or veneers digitally — with exact seating surfaces, defined occlusion, and aesthetic parameters that can be discussed with the patient beforehand. Unlike manual wax modeling, the CAD process is fully documentable, traceable, and repeatable.
CAM: Automated Manufacturing
The digital design is transferred directly to production (Computer-Aided Manufacturing, or CAM). A milling machine mills the restoration from a blank — ceramic, zirconia, composite, or plastic — with micrometer-level precision. Alternatively or additionally, 3D printing is used: particularly for provisionals, splints, models, and increasingly for definitive restorations as well.
Try-in and Seating
The finished restoration is tried in, minimally adjusted if necessary, and seated. Thanks to digital precision, adjustments are far less frequently needed than with analog procedures.
Qualitätsstandards des Instituts
Questions from Scientific Perspective
Clinical Implementation
Prothetik bei Smile4Life
Der klinische Partner des Instituts, Smile4Life, führt die beschriebenen Behandlungen nach den Qualitätsstandards des Instituts durch.
Verwandte Themen
Kurz erklärt
Digital prosthetics means that dental restorations — crowns, bridges, dentures — are planned and milled with computer support. The result is more precise, faster, and often completed in a single appointment. For patients, this means fewer appointments, fewer impressions, and better fit.
Wann ist das relevant?
- You need a crown, bridge, or denture
- You wonder what 'CAD/CAM' or 'chairside' means
- You want to know if dental prosthetics can be completed in one appointment
- You are comparing different materials (zirconia, ceramic, composite)
Passende Leitfäden
Fragen für das Erstgespräch
- Will my dental prosthetics be fabricated digitally or conventionally?
- Can my crown / bridge be fabricated in a single appointment?
- Which material do you recommend for my situation and why?
- How long does digital dental prosthetics last compared to conventional?
Hinweis: Die Inhalte dieser Seite dienen ausschließlich der allgemeinen Information und ersetzen keine individuelle zahnärztliche Beratung durch einen approbierten Zahnarzt oder Facharzt. Das Institut für Implantologie und digitale Zahnmedizin Wien ist eine gemeinnützige, unabhängige Wissenschaftsplattform — kein Behandlungsbetrieb. Alle Angaben entsprechen dem aktuellen Stand der wissenschaftlichen Literatur; individuelle Behandlungsentscheidungen müssen stets mit einem approbierten Zahnarzt getroffen werden.