Crowns and fillings in a single visit at Lake Baldwin Dental Orlando, FL

New technology creates natural-looking fillings and crowns in a single visit

As part of his modern approach to dental care, Dr. William Dunn of Lake Baldwin Dental recently added the availability of tooth-colored fillings and crowns, formed to exact tooth dimensions in a single office visit. The innovative tooth restoration is made possible by computer-aided technology that designs and mills a custom ceramic restoration in less than 20 minutes.

“We are pleased to offer our patients the most convenient and aesthetically pleasing tooth restoration process available today,” said Dr. Dunn, who works and lives in Baldwin Park. “Time is increasingly precious, and we recognize that most people don’t see the dentist office as a favorite hangout. Using this new equipment we can provide a great looking smile to our patients in a single visit.”

The new restorations system, called CEREC, is comprised of a digital infrared camera, a medical grade computer and a milling machine, all located on site at the Lake Baldwin Dental office, 950 Lake Baldwin Lane in Baldwin Park. It allows Dr. Dunn to repair a damaged tooth in about one hour using tooth-colored ceramic restorations. The camera takes an optical impression of the damaged tooth, eliminating the need for cumbersome and uncomfortable impression molds, and uploads the image to the computer. Once the photo impression is in the system, Dr. Dunn uses three-dimensional computer aided design software to design the restoration. Then the computer aided manufacturing system takes over to automatically create the restoration while the patient waits.

Traditional approaches often require a return appointment after the patient waited for the restoration to be manufactured in a separate lab. On-site milling eliminates the need for a second appointment to complete the restoration – the new custom-crafted restoration is typically ready to be bonded in place within the hour.

Restorations created using this new technology offer dental patients a long-lasting, esthetic alternative to silver or plastic fillings, crowns and veneers, said Dr. Dunn. They are as durable as traditionally fabricated restorations and are designed to match the patients’ natural teeth in form and function. “We are optimistic that the availability of these restorations will help some patients overcome their fears when they see how fast and painless the treatment process can be.”

Lake Baldwin Dental opened its state-of-the-art practice in Baldwin Park in July of 2005. A family and cosmetic dentist, Dr. Dunn is a graduate of the University of Florida College of Dentistry and has special aesthetic training from the Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studies, the world’s premier post-graduate teaching facility for cosmetic and aesthetic dentistry. He and his family are residents of the Baldwin Park community.