OmnicamAllows Us to Approach Cases Like Never Before
“
No!” “You can’t!”
“
That’s Impossible!”
we learn early on that there are
limits and barriers in life. Some barriers
are self-imposed; some are imposed by
others or by the laws of nature.
Recently, we saw the passing of Neil
Armstrong, the first man on the moon.
The program he was involved with set
out to break through the biggest barrier
of that generation; and they simply would
not accept “no” for an answer. They only
accepted solutions to the problems that
confronted them. Armstrong himself
refused to be limited by any fears that he
may have had, and accepted the mission
placed upon him.
Some may say that there were very
few benefits from this endeavor, but I
disagree. Aside from the national inspi-
ration and pride of this accomplish-
ment, we got the benefits of remarkable
advancements in microelectronics and
materials. Many of the things we take for
granted in our daily lives were born out
of the Space Race.
The same can be said for the CAD/
CAM race. For years, my old friend, the
Redcam, was my best employee. Always
showing up on time and doing what
it was asked to do, Redcam was very
reliable. Then, we had the new kid on the
block, the Bluecam. It proved to be just
as reliable, but I could count on it for a
wider range of duties. Sirona Connect
allowed me to branch out by performing
larger cases digitally, to integrate with
my cone beam to help plan implant cases
accurately, and to execute them with
precision I could have never
achieved before. In other
words, it removed barriers
that held me back, and
| | |
b y P e t e G a r d e l l , D . D . S .
allowed me to expand my practice.
Now we’ve come to a new age of
digital dentistry. With the release of
the Omnicam at CEREC 27 and a half,
we have a new, more powerful tool that
can help break down those remaining
barriers that have kept us from growing
—
something powerful enough to
challenge how we approach the day-to-
day procedures we have in the office.
Something with ColorStreaming video
capture with precision that only the
Bluecam can rival. The beauty of the
picture captures the attention of the
patient, engaging them in conversation
and opening opportunities to talk about
their dental health and needs.
The ease-of-use and clarity of the
picture makes us wonder “How can I use
this to the fullest?” We have to change
our mindset, and we have to change the
way we process the information. We
1
have to realize that some of the barriers
we have put up are now crashing down
as we start to push the limits of this new
technology.
ColorStreaming helps get us to a point
where our virtual patient in the CEREC
system responds as our real life patient
does (Fig. 1). It’s more accurate than
study models and pictures, and clearer
to the patient so they can understand
and take ownership of what is happening
in their mouth. We can accurately show
the patient the possibilities but also
manage their expectations. I see the door
opening to better treatment plans and to
better treatment execution. We will be
able to make restorations that look and
function better for our patients.
Along with the changes to the method
of capture, we have changes to the
way we manage the information. The
image catalog as we have known it is
Fig. 1: A scan of the
patient’s lips
overlayed on
the virtual
model of the
preparations.
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