Glidewell Restorative CT\u2122 Integrated Solution

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., February 21, 2023 (Newswire.com) - Attendees of the 38th Annual LMT Lab Day Chicago can visit Glidewell representatives at Booth L-13, East Tower to learn about the all-new Glidewell Restorative CT™ Integrated Solution, developed and used by the California-based laboratory to digitize physical impressions and expedite digital crown design without the need for traditional plaster models.

Known for its mission to improve patient access to dental care by way of technological innovations, Glidewell has worked for years to develop a micro-CT-based solution that can help to eliminate errors and inefficiencies associated with analog model work.

"Most remakes originate in the plaster room," said Jim Glidewell, the company's founder and president, "resulting in lost chair time for the dentist and inconvenience for the patient. The lab is harmed not just in terms of productivity, but reputation. It's been a headache for my entire 55 years in the business."

The advent of computed tomography (CT) scanning led him to wonder if the technology could be used to scan a physical impression. When none of the CT scanners on the market proved sufficient, the technology pioneer challenged his engineers to develop an in-house machine that not only met ISO standards for accuracy of crown fit but was also capable of 24/7 high-volume lab production.

The Glidewell Restorative CT solution uses X-ray technology to overcome an optical scanner's line-of-sight limitation, capturing undercuts and other concavities for greater dimensional accuracy. The subsequent "meshing" of scan layers takes place seamlessly in the cloud while the next impression is scanned, serving to maximize overall throughput.

"Even though 50% of our cases are submitted digitally, 70% of our customers still send us physical impressions," said Mr. Glidewell. "Scanning the original impression has proven far more advantageous than scanning a stone model—as I believe most lab owners would agree."

Once a scan is finalized, the integrated software provides virtual models and automatic crown designs derived from proprietary artificial intelligence trained from 20 million actual cases. Glidewell claims an 81% acceptance rate of automatic design proposals, requiring no refinement from a CAD operator and boosting daily design output by as much as 300%.

The streamlined process takes just minutes, after which design files can be downloaded from the cloud and milled anywhere.

"By eliminating the plaster process, we've reduced costs, accelerated turnaround, and increased the consistency of our restorations. It's been a true game changer for production, and I encourage fellow labs of any significant case volume to see if it can do the same for them."

The Glidewell Restorative CT solution was initially unveiled at the January 2023 NADL Vision 21 meeting in a presentation by Mr. Glidewell. For more information, contact Monica Silva at (949) 524-7510.