CAD/CAM - international magazine of digital dentistry

I 03 editorial _ CAD/CAM I CAD/CAM 2_2013 Magdalena Wojtkiewicz Managing Editor _This year’s most important event in the dental industry—the International Dental Show(IDS)inCologneisbehindus.IDSonceagainsucceededinshowcasingthehighestlevel of innovation in dentistry, and IDS 2013 was all about digital dentistry. CAD/CAM procedures now not only offer improvements in preventative care, treatments, and laboratory procedures so important for dental professionals, but also give patients a virtually unprecedented opportunity to see the desired treatment outcome, and experience the benefits of engineering expertise and medical advancement directly. Backward planning, as it is called, is increasingly becoming integrated into dental procedures and dental laboratory processes. The more complex the medical procedures it is used with, the greater the benefits it offers will be. Dental implants are a good example because the treatment outcome depends greatly on consultation. Dentists and dental technicians can now work with data from 2-D and 3-D radiographs captured using CBCT and facial scanners, as well as with data obtained from classic or digital dental impressions. This allows the creation of precise digital surgical guides, for example, that ensure dental implants will be placed in exactly the right position and at precisely the right angle. Any crowns or bridges subsequently seated will be in the optimal position too. In addition, the emergence profile can be designed to have as natural an appearance as possible. This issue of CAD/CAM discusses some of these new procedures, and I hope that these articles will aid you in applying these methods in your practice to improve your work to your patients’ benefit in particular. Yours sincerely, Magdalena Wojtkiewicz Dear Reader,