“You don’t realize the importance of your back teeth until they’re gone.” Reflecting on a recent case, fourth-year dental student Minh-Tom Van (DDS ’23) said. His patient had pain in his molars and for eight months he was unable to chew or eat properly. While this is not an uncommon situation, Van took inspiration from members of the faculty to offer some great ideas for treatment.
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Students at the University of Colorado School of Dentistry (CU SDM) are taught two processes, digital and analog, when learning how to take impressions, design crowns, and restore implants. Van thought, why not learn both at once?
“This is an exciting case because it is a way to step into the advancement of dentistry,” said Brian Brada, CU SDM Clinical Associate Professor, DDS. “Students can learn how to take a traditional analog impression on one side and a digital impression on the other. This is the first time he’s done something like this here at CU Dental.”
Van’s class was the first group of students to take a new course called Advanced and Digital Prosthodontics. This course gives you the opportunity to learn how to take digital impressions using a 3D scanner. After getting his feet wet with his introduction, Van was keen to put it into practice. He worked with one of his mentors, clinical associate professor David Gozalo (DDS, MS), to put together a treatment plan.
“This was not a traditional aesthetic case where the goal is to create a good looking smile,” says Van. “This was about restoring the function of the patient’s teeth and mouth.
Lifelong Learners Embrace Students’ Innovative Ideas
Patient Dennis Thomas, a Vietnam War veteran and University of Colorado graduate, needed a total of six implants. Three of him on one side of the mouth and three of him on the other. He has always been an advocate for continuing education and when Van presented him with an opportunity to get involved in something new and improve student learning, he was more than happy to help.
“I was in the U.S. Army Medical Corps, so I understand what it’s like to be a student. We are delighted to be a part of their education and the early stages of their careers.”
– CU Dental Patient Dennis Thomas
thomas For 23 years, he traveled the world with the military. from Colorado Missouri, Hawaii, Germany Came backHe also attended a military program in radiology at the historic Fitzsimmons Army Hospital, which is now the foundation of the CU Anschutz Medical Campus.
Dennis Thomas in front of the historic Fitzsimmons Building
As a lifelong learner, Thomas likes to keep busy, to say the least. Currently, he is a pilot, flight instructor, martial arts instructor, skier and snowboarder, photographer, jazz musician, and scuba his diving instructor.
“Education doesn’t stop. I’m in my 70s and want to learn something new every day.”
This impressive set of interests brought his own concerns to his dental practice. He had to be absolutely sure that there were no air pockets in his mouth. If you go too high or dive too deep with pockets of air, the pressure changes can build up and cause extreme discomfort or, in the worst case, burst and burst teeth. I have.
“My dental care team fits my needs very well,” says Thomas. “Like the bartenders remembering your drink, they remember me being a scuba instructor and pilot and constantly asking how everything is going. Not only are they asking how I feel, but I know they care about me personally.
Thomas and Van especially bond over their upbringing in Colorado. Both were born and raised here in his Centennial State and received their undergraduate education at the University of Colorado, Denver.
Student Minh-Tom Van and patient Dennis Thomas at the CU Dental Student Clinic
Digital vs. Analog from a Student and Patient Perspective
“We expect the long-term results of analog and digital implants to be very similar,” Van said. “It’s like he’s two different paths towards the same goal.”
In the traditional analog process, students take sticky impressions of the patient’s mouth and send the physical impressions to the lab to create implant crowns.
In the digital process, students use the TRIOS 3Shape digital scanner to create a 3D rendering of a patient’s mouth. The implants are then designed in a computer program and milled using an Ivoclar milling machine. This creates an identical physical replica of your digital design, ready to give to your patient in minutes.
“[Thomas] I enjoyed the whole digital process,” said Van. “It’s much quicker for patients. It’s a lot of work as a student and an advising practitioner, but I think it’s worth it to deliver quality care in a more efficient way.” “
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3D rendering of a patient’s mouth (left side) with a digitally designed implant crown in place |
Analog impression of the patient’s mouth (right side) with physical implant crown |
Students learn the process of digital impressions as part of their curriculum, but traditionally digital files are sent to labs to create implants. But in this case, Van ordered all the implant components, digitally designed the crowns with faculty supervisors, and milled the implant crowns into abutments himself.
This is the first time that the entire process, from impression taking to delivery, is performed at a student clinic.
The final step is to ensure that the implant fits correctly, feels good, and functions as closely as possible to natural teeth. “That’s the goal,” Van said.
At the first scheduled follow-up, Thomas told Van:The bite is natural, the alignment gives a nice smile and all the implants feel like real teeth.I am proud of the work [Van] Did. I really appreciate him and the whole team. ”
When asked what he was going to eat first now that his molars are fully functional, Thomas said: I can’t wait to dig into it. ”
