Digital impression: a scanner instead of a tray of putty

A classic impression means a tray of thick material held in the mouth for three or four minutes. For some people that is merely unpleasant. For anyone with a sensitive gag reflex it is the reason prosthetic work gets postponed for years. An intraoral scanner removes the problem entirely: only a small camera goes in, nothing sets, and you can stop at any moment.

What it is and how it differs from an impression

The scanner is a camera roughly the size of an electric toothbrush. The dentist moves it along the arch while it captures hundreds of frames a second and assembles them into a three-dimensional model of the jaw right on the screen.

The difference from a silicone impression is not only comfort.

No material distortion. Silicone shrinks as it sets and on the way to the lab. A digital file does not change at all.

Errors show up instantly. If an area captured badly, you see it on screen that same second — rescan the fragment and move on. With putty the flaw is discovered in the lab and the patient is called back for a second impression.

The model does not go anywhere. The file stays in the archive. A year or five years later you can see how the teeth looked before the work — useful both for planning new treatment and simply for comparison.

How the scan goes

It usually takes three to eight minutes, depending on the scope of the work.

The teeth are dried — moisture stops the camera from reading the surface. Then the dentist runs the scanner along the outer side of the arch, then over the biting surface, then along the inner side. The same for the second jaw. At the end you are asked to close your teeth and the bite is scanned from the side.

Nothing presses and nothing sets. You can breathe freely through the nose or the mouth. If it becomes uncomfortable, say so — the dentist stops, and scanning resumes from the same place rather than from the beginning.

That is exactly why it suits people with a sensitive reflex: the unpleasant sensation comes from the material and from a blocked throat, and here there is neither.

What it is used for

The scanner covers most prosthetic tasks:

Crowns, inlays, veneers. The model goes to the technician digitally, without plaster. Zirconia work is milled directly from that same file.

Work on implants. The implant position is read from a scan body, and the crown seats precisely.

Aligners. For aligner treatment a digital model is mandatory — the whole plan of tooth movement is calculated from it.

A surgical guide for implantation. The scan is matched with the CT scan, and the pair is used to print a guide that sets the exact angle and depth.

Tracking over time. An annual scan shows whether the teeth are wearing down and whether they have moved after orthodontics.

A classic impression is still needed in some cases — for full removable dentures, for instance, where the mobile mucosa has to be captured under load. This is not a contest between methods; they are different tools.

What it costs

A digital impression (scan) costs UAH 1,550. It is a separate line in the price list and does not depend on the number of teeth: scanning one jaw and scanning both costs the same.

For implantation the scan is usually already included in the package: consultation + guide + scan + CT — UAH 6,490. It is not charged separately in that case.

In prosthetic work the scan is a preparatory stage, not a service that replaces something else. The crown or veneer itself is priced separately and depends on the material.

Worth knowing in advance

The scanner cannot see through gum or blood. If the edge of the tooth sits below the gum, the dentist first retracts it with cord — otherwise the preparation margin cannot be read. That adds a few minutes.

Very shiny surfaces read less well. Metal crowns and amalgam fillings reflect light. Modern scanners mostly cope, but occasionally an area has to be passed over twice.

It is not a substitute for an examination. A scan shows shape, not condition: it will not reveal decay under a filling, or the state of the canals and bone. So an X-ray and an examination are still needed before prosthetic work.

You can take the result with you. If you are being treated in two places or want a second opinion, we hand over the file — any laboratory can read it.

Frequently asked questions

Oleksii Sydorenko

Prosthodontist

Prosthetics on a digital protocol: crowns, veneers, restorations on implants. A “do no harm” approach — preserving as much living tooth tissue as possible.

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