A Patient’s first-hand experience of an iTero 3D scanner.
Dental Elements latest technology: Digital impressions.
Chirag turned on the scanner and started doing…whatever it is dentists do over your shoulder while you’re lying back staring at the ceiling. Then with a tiny wand that looked something like a lightsabre from Star Wars, only smaller, he gently moved it around inside my mouth.
This wand was taking many pictures to create a 3D model of my teeth on the iTero interface.
It reminded me of the map in the old Nintendo game The Legend of Zelda: The more Chirag explored, the more it opened up and showed you your 3D image.
This part was exciting and took about 10 minutes.
Once Chirag completed the 3D image on the screen, he started to change the angle around and look at my teeth from impossible angles to piece together the picture.
The iTero 3D scanner even lets us select individual teeth and rotate or turn them to help patients visualise how misaligned a particular tooth is. Jonathan Lee
I started to notice the various angles of my teeth, ones that I’d never seen before. What was clear is that my teeth are not straight after all!
Chirag and I discussed how my teeth occlude and where the pressure points are. I know this is an issue for me because I grinded my teeth for several years. The programme demonstrated key pressure points where the wear is occurring.
Seeing into the Future but in the Present
The great and well mind-blowing part was the simulation of what my teeth could look like after Invisalign, with the simulation displayed side-by-side with the actual scan of my teeth.
Let’s say that the stimulated teeth are a lot straighter than my current smile. Chirag explained that by adjusting my teeth and my bite, I might be able to relieve the wear and tear that I’m putting on my back teeth. And while he didn’t say it, which I appreciate, by getting my teeth straightened with Invisalign, I could save myself a lot of pain (and money) down the road.
Patients scanned with an iTero experience seven times fewer fit problems and ten times fewer rejections.
A scan with the iTero is a fascinating process, and it’s a great tool to have at your trusted dentist. In six months, when I come in, Chirag can scan me again, and we can start to build actual data about the movement of my teeth.an
