Dental News - The outcome is simulated, but the wow is genuine

Dental Tribune USA

Tue. 1 October 2013

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Technology is progressing so fast these days that it can be hard to still wow people. This is especially true when it comes to younger patients, who have been born and grown up knowing nothing but the connected life. This is why the new iTero 2.9 intra-oral scanner is so impressive.

Not only does it offer a set of features that will wow the most gadget-oriented orthodontist (you know who you are), but it has some unique features that will make even the hardest-to-impress-patients (we’re talking to you, teenagers) offer a begrudging, “That’s pretty cool.”

The crown jewel of the iTero 2.9 is the Invisalign Outcome Simulator, which we’ll get to shortly. But, first things first: the iTero 2.9 is the latest iteration of the intraoral scanner from Align Technology. This next generation iTero has upped the performance while shrinking the physical footprint of the entire system, including the imaging wand. Like its predecessors, the 2.9 is all about accuracy. It captures a level of detail that simply isn’t possible using a traditional impression.

If you think this accuracy is overkill, think again. A recent study suggested that up to 40 percent of all the PVS impressions taken show some type of physical deformity such as a tear, void or pull.[1] Impressions taken with the iTero 2.9 intra-oral scanner have a remake rate of just .0015 percent.[2] A number that small can seem abstract, so think of it this way, that means that many practices will go a year or more without ever having to re-impress a patient.

Still, this kind of accuracy is now expected when it comes to digital processes. It’s once you pair up the iTero 2.9 with Invisalign treatment that the scanner will begin to wow the orthodontist. That’s because iTero is the only intra-oral imaging device that offers 100 percent inter-operability with the Invisalign procedure.

Tim Mack, Align Technology vice president and general manager of iTero says: “iTero is the only intraoral scanner that is currently certified with Invisalign. The process for validating intraoral scanning with Invisalign production is extensive. To date, only the iTero system has proven to consistently meet the requirements for providing the orthodontic full-arch scan data required for Invisalign.”

Capturing a scan for Invisalign treatment is easy. But it’s the inclusion of the Invisalign Outcome Simulator that’s really captured the imagination of the orthodontic community.

The Invisalign Outcome Simulator is a standard part of the latest generation iTero software. The chairside application is specifically designed to enhance patient acceptance by helping them visualize how their teeth will look at the end of treatment.

Simulated outcomes make it easy to show patients the benefits of Invisalign treatment, rather than just telling them. The Invisalign Outcome Simulator’s dual-view layout shows the patient’s current dentition alongside his or her final outcome.

Dr. Jonny Feldman is a second-generation orthodontist in Feldman Orthodontics (along with his father and brother) in Cheshire, Conn. He says that his family’s practice was one of the first three or four practices in the country to adopt the iTero technology in 2009. He believes so strongly in the technology that his daughter was one of the first Invisalign cases started with an iTero scanner.

“One of the historically difficult things to do with Invisalign was the PVS impression,” Feldman said. “I love iTero. Quicker turnaround for us getting the aligners. I can scan a patient, and it goes directly to Invisalign. I get my ClinCheck back in days as opposed to a week. The turnaround time to just get my patient in aligners is greatly reduced. Now we don’t have to rely on the U.S. mail much.”

While the technology is state-of-the-art, iTero has followed the lead set forth by Apple with the revolutionary iPhone product line and opted to make the process as intuitive as possible. According to Feldman, the company has succeeded.

“It’s not a hard thing to master at all,” he said. “The software talks you through the scan process.” He says that even his more tenured assistants didn’t have much trouble integrating the process into their skill repertoire.

When it comes to the Invisalign Outcome Simulator, it seems that both Feldman and his patients are impressed.

“It helps establish a beginning and an end,” he said. “Showing them a simulation of the end result is a powerful tool. I can say ‘I want to close a space here’ but a picture is worth a thousand words.

“I’ll never go back to not having a scanner in my office. To me, it’s a must-have for any practice that does Invisalign. The bottom line is that its stress-free for your patients, and it’s stress free for your staff,” Feldman concluded.

(Source: Align Technology)

Note: This article was published in Ortho Tribune U.S. Edition, Vol. 8 No. 2, AAO Preview issue. A complete list of references is available from the publisher.

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