The basic task carried out by a reputed dental laboratory is using the surgical guide as well as the articulated diagnostic casts for fabricating prostheses. Its primary role in respect of restorative dentistry is the meticulous following of all the functional as well as esthetic parameters defined for such dentistry.
Dental Laboratory Working Process
For patients and others, it would be interesting to learn about the dental laboratory working procedure adopted by the laboratory. The steps followed by the dental laboratory in the dental restoration process are as follows:
- The laboratory starts with initial patient consultation;
- Diagnosis of the dental ailment
- Treatment planning; and
- Taking the final restoration placement.
Importance of Communication between dentists and laboratories
Effective communication is the lifeline of the dental laboratory working procedure as it helps the transmission of vital information on functional components as well as esthetic parameters between the dentist and the technicians working in the laboratory. Such an exchange of communication is vital in accomplishing the restorative process without compromising on the quality.
Dental Laboratory Equipment
Dental treatment from its preparatory and diagnostic stage uses various types of equipment. For instance; communication between the dentist and lab technicians is carried out using suitable dental laboratory equipment such as –
- High definition photographs shoot with a powerful camera;
- The impression of the existing dental status of the patient obtained with high-quality dental lab equipment;
- Dental articulators for mounting such impressions making the formation of the treatment process easier and accurate.
Dental Laboratory Product with Work Authorization
Dental laboratories can come up with suitable dental lab products conforming to the rules and regulations. National Association of Dental Laboratories has put in place guidelines applicable in the entire country. However, states are also authorized to form additional rules and regulations for running the dental laboratories. To ensure conformity with the law properly formulated work authorization is a must inclusion for dental laboratory working process/procedure. The reason is that it can protect the professional relationship between the dentist and the laboratory.
Direct Restoration using Digital Data
These days any dental laboratory is dependent on digital data including the dental impressions of the patient to formulate treatment planning. Also, due to rapid strides made by information technology in recent years inspires the dentists and laboratories to use CAD/CAM technologies as an integral part of the dental laboratory working process/procedure.
The restoration process is a direct one as the laboratories take account of the digital data and teeth impressions of the patient. The same procedure is applied to creating dental lab products. In essence; the laboratories combine digital data as the dental lab equipment to produce the best restoration for the clients.