Not long ago, having a crown to repair a tooth damaged by severe decay or a traumatic injury necessitated at least two visits to the dentist. Well, those days are gone. Now, at Cowlitz River Dental in Castle Rock, WA, near Longview, WA, we can prepare your tooth, mill the crown—as well as an inlay or onlay—and set the crown all in one appointment. How, you ask? CEREC One-Visit Dentistry allows Dr. L. Blaine Kennington and his staff to restore your tooth and refurbish your smile in short order.
The CEREC system uses CAD/CAM technology. Included in the system is a digital infrared camera that takes a photo of your damaged tooth, 3-D CAD software to design your unique tooth restoration and a milling unit that fabricates the restoration in our Castle Rock office.
The CEREC Process
Once Dr. Kennington determines that a CEREC crown is the appropriate choice, then the procedure is rather straight-forward. First, the tooth needing repair is isolated and the surrounding tissue is anesthetized. Dr. Kennington then prepares the tooth after which the digital camera creates a digital impression (instead of a molded impression) of your tooth. In turn, this impression is entered into CEREC’s computer system in order to develop a 3-D model of your tooth, including its shape, size and color. The design is electronically transmitted to the milling unit, which fabricates your metal-free crown in approximately 20 minutes or less.
After checking the restoration, Dr. Kennington adhesively bonds it into place. In only one visit, you have a fully restored tooth that’s as good as new. To care for your CEREC crown, brush and floss your teeth twice daily as usual. Also, try to avoid chewing hard foods with your new crown.
Schedule an Appointment Today
If you’d like to learn more about CEREC One-Visit Crowns, then call the office of Cowlitz River Dental in Castle Rock, WA. We conveniently serve patients from Longview, WA, as well as Castle Rock, Kelso, Lewis County and the surrounding areas.