CAD/CAM - international magazine of digital dentistry

38 I I industry news _ European Dental Prosthetics and CAD/CAM Systems CAD/CAM 2_2013 Newest developments in the Europeandentalprostheticsand CAD/CAM devices segments Authors_Dr Kamran Zamanian and Ceren Altincekic, Canada _TheEuropeandentalprostheticsandCAD/CAM devices segments are currently experiencing two opposing forces that will determine the future of these segments. On the one hand, the eurozone crisis is far from being over. Southern European countries such as Spain, Italy and to some extent France are going through an economic downturn, which is delaying dental restorations and slowing down industry growth. On the other hand, the seg- ments are growing at a significant pace owing to technological innovations in restoration materials, CAD/CAM devices such as intra-oral scanners and smaller, but more efficient milling machines. The second trend is expected to trump the first one as countries slowly recover from the economic crises and new technologies revive the market. _All-ceramic and porcelain-fused- to-metal restorations dominate the European dental prosthetics market All-ceramic restorations are becoming increas- inglypopularintheEuropeanmarketowingtotheir aesthetic value. In 2012, the all-ceramics segment grew by more than 5 per cent to constitute a third of all crowns and bridges sold. All-ceramic resto- rations are expected to approach the porcelain- fused-to-metal share by 2019. Non-precious restorations represent the largest portion of all crown and bridge work owing to their affordability. Theywillremainatthelevelofapproximately42per cent over the next few years. Semi-precious and high-precious materials will be impacted adversely as their biocompatibility and durability are increas- ingly mimicked by other, less-expensive materials such as cobalt–chromium alloys. Precious metals usedindentalrestorations,suchasgold,haveexpe- rienced significant price hikes over the last decade. Astheirutilitydiminishes,thesemetalswillbeginto losemarketshareinthedentalprostheticssegment. Newtechnologiesarebeginningtoblurthelines thatseparatedifferentdentalrestorationmaterials. Composite materials are becoming more popular, as they combine the most desirable characteristics of their components. New products such as trans- lucent zirconia or hybrid ceramics are promising better value with increased resilience and a more natural look. Higher demand for these products will drive higher prices for quality dental prosthetics. The price hike will be balanced by increasingly cheaper imports from countries such as China, Taiwan and Morocco.Overall,thedentalprostheticssegmentin Europe will experience a slight price increase by 2019 owing to better-quality crowns and bridges made of new, more aesthetically pleasing and robust materials. _Intra-oral digital impression-taking scanners becoming more popular in the European market Intra-oral digital impression-taking scanners are attracting the attention of more dentists and laboratories alike owing to their ease-of-use, non-invasiveness and recent affordability. Newer- generation intra-oral scanners allow dentists to take impressions without the use of powder or paste,whichmakestheprocessmuchfasterandless intrusiveforpatients.Oncetheimpressionhasbeen taken, the technician can modify the image as he or she wishes and then send it to a laboratory for milling. The increase in the number of intra-oral scanners in the market is pushing scanner manu- facturers to offer open-architecture software that will allow users the freedom to choose the milling centreoftheirpreference.Alltheseaspectsofintra- oralscannersmakethemattractiveinvestmentsfor dental offices and laboratories alike.