Digital impressions for your braces

Digital dentistry: digital dental technologies are constantly opening up new worlds, especially in orthodontics. Right at the forefront: the Eltz Institut in Vienna relies on the innovative iTero scanner, which not only takes perfect digital impressions of the teeth but also realistically simulates the results you can expect from the treatment.

The sky’s the limit! – that is the motto of the digital world, as clouds & co. prove. In medicine, too, the latest digital technologies are making ever better treatment options and results possible. Modern equipment optimises the work of doctors and patients and makes it enormously easier.

Super scanner instead of peppermint paste

The most revolutionary invention in dentistry at the moment is called iTero; it comes from the USA and is state of the art in imaging technology. The trendsetting Eltz Institut in Vienna’s city centre is now using the device: “This 3-D scanner takes true-to-life digital impressions of the teeth, which can then be used to make invisible braces or grinding splints, for example,” says orthodontist and founder of the centre, Dr. Maija Eltz. For patients, this is a great relief: “Many people find it hard to tolerate the cold metal trays in their mouth and the sticky alginate or silicone material normally used to take a dental impression,” says the doctor. “They get an acute gag reflex or even panic attacks because they cannot breathe and swallow normally.”

With iTero, everything is really easy: the doctor moves the scanner wand along the rows of teeth and the built-in laser transfers the data to the computer. Nothing escapes the sensitive scanner head: working at top speed and in high resolution, the iTero captures even irregular surfaces precisely. The digital information can then be used to create a perfect aligner – without any tell-tale traces of peppermint or pineapple paste on the patient’s face or on the doctor’s pristine white coat. “Not only does the procedure take half as long as taking impressions manually, the error rate when making the aligners is also seven times lower than with the conventional method,” says Dr. Eltz. This is a genuine innovation that makes life easier for doctor and patient alike.

Computer simulation of the treatment results

Thanks to the fast data transfer, the braces are also ready sooner: “After a digital impression, the aligners are ready a week earlier than when conventional impressions are taken,” says Dr. Eltz. This means the patient can start wearing the aligners sooner. 

After the digital scan, you can also see the result with our ClinCheck© technology before treatment even begins. Read more