Kinross Dental Care introduces digital dentistry to Sri Lanka

From left: Dr. Sama Weerapperuma, Dr. Indika Weerapperuma, Bandujeewa Dharmathileke (Biomed International), Finnish Ambassador to Sri Lanka Harri Kämäräinen and Honorary Consul General for Finland in Sri Lanka Ashroff Omar 

Dr. Indika Weerapperuma demonstrates the use of the optical scanner to Harri Kämäräinen and Ashroff Omar

Kinross Dental Care has been at the forefront of introducing the latest dental technology to Sri Lanka. Embracing the digital world by introducing Cone Beam Computer Tomography (CBCT) imaging and 3D guides to Sri Lanka in 2019, the latest addition to Kinross Dental Care is a Computer Aided Design/Computer Aided Manufacture (CAD/CAM) unit. 

From Planmeca Oy, Finland, the CAD/CAM unit was installed in January 2020 to provide state-of-the-art Dentistry to patients, on par with international norms.

Finnish Ambassador to Sri Lanka Harri Kämäräinen, together with Honorary Consul General for Finland in Sri Lanka Ashroff Omar, recently visited Kinross Dental Care to witness the latest in Finnish dental technology being installed in Colombo. He congratulated the team on behalf of the Government of Finland for being the first to install this advanced unit in Sri Lanka. 

The CAD/CAM and CBCT units are manufactured by Planmeca Oy, a global leader in the field of health care technology, with products distributed in excess of 120 countries worldwide. Together with its local partner, Biomed International Ltd., Planmeca has been working closely with Kinross Dental Care to deliver this new digital technology to Sri Lanka. 

CAD/CAM technology has revolutionised restorative dentistry worldwide and has enabled design and manufacture of high-quality restorations, such as crowns, veneers, onlays and bridges with greater accuracy and speed. 

This process is carried out in three stages – scan – design – mill. An optical 3D scanner is used to capture 3D digital images of teeth and these images are digitalised and fed to a software program where a virtual model of teeth is created. The 3-Dimensional scanner picks up minute details (down to less than one hundredth of a millimetre) including 3D contours of the teeth and colour. The operator using the software will design (CAD) the restoration (for example, a crown) on a virtual model. 

The information is fed seamlessly to a digital milling machine. The crown is then manufactured (CAM) using a 3-Dimensional high precision milling machine. A pre-selected material is used to comply with the stresses and strains the crown would be subjected to during its use. Finally, the crown is cured using a high temperature furnace to ensure optimum performance of the restoration (crown).

CAD/CAM can be used in the design and construction of veneers, implant abutments, crowns, inlays, onlays and bridges. CAD/CAM can also be effectively used in orthodontics with improved and desirable outcomes.

The advent of Chairside milling allows the dentist to scan – design – mill, a high-quality restoration in-house. An additional advantage would be that the patient can be fitted with a restoration (crown) during a single visit. The need for impressions, temporary crowns and up to two weeks waiting time for a crown can now be considered a thing of the past. The existing CBCT facility at Kinross Dental Care can be combined with CAD/CAM technology, enabling the dentist to obtain an accurate 3D overview of the patient’s dentition while providing patients with a seamless digital dental experience.

This introduction moves Sri Lanka closer to world-class dentistry, enabling patients to gain access to high quality precision fabrications designed, manufactured and fitted in a single visit. Modern and state-of-the-art dentistry is now available in Colombo. 

Dr. Indika Weerapperuma explains the functionality of the PlanMill milling machine to Harri Kämäräinen and Ashroff Omar