Here is how our technology makes your care at The Orthodontic Gallery in Riverview more comfortable and more precise.
Why Modern Technology Matters
A digital scan replaces the impression tray, the putty, and the gagging with a 3D model built in a few minutes. It can be checked instantly and re-run on the spot if something moved. Digital scans also go straight to aligner manufacturers as data, with no physical model shipped anywhere.
Faster
Treatment Times
Increased
Patient Comfort
Fewer In-Office Appointments
More Precise Tooth Alignment
Medit i900 Digital Scanner
A handheld wand that builds a 3D model of your teeth on screen in a few minutes. It replaces the impression tray, the putty, and the gagging.
That sounds like a comfort improvement, and it is, but the clinical difference is larger. A digital scan can be checked instantly and re-run in seconds if something moved. A distorted putty impression is not discovered until the lab pours the model, which means a second appointment. Scans also go straight to aligner manufacturers and to LightForce as data, with no physical model shipped anywhere.
Cone Beam 3D Imaging
Conventional dental X-rays are flat. A cone beam scan produces a three-dimensional view of the teeth, roots, jaw bones, and the palate.
We do not take one on every patient. It is used where the case genuinely needs it: assessing whether an adult palatal suture will separate for expansion, locating impacted teeth and the roots around them, planning cases involving jaw surgery, and checking root position where movement will be substantial.
That selectivity is deliberate. Imaging should be taken because a clinical question needs answering, not as a routine.
LightForce Custom 3D-Printed Brackets
Brackets designed individually for each of your teeth from your scan, then printed, rather than selected from stock sizes. Better fit, planned bracket position, and generally fewer adjustment appointments. See LightForce.
Our In-House Aligner Lab
We design and fabricate clear aligners in the practice for limited cases, most often minor relapse after previous orthodontic treatment.
Turnaround drops from weeks to days, because nothing is shipped to a manufacturer and back.
It is not the right tool for complex cases, and we do not use it as a cheap substitute where a case needs more. See clear aligners.
Digital Treatment Planning
Every case is planned in software before an appliance goes near your mouth. Tooth movements are sequenced, the projected result is simulated, and for aligner cases you see that simulation at your first visit.
A simulation shows the plan. Dr. Wakas will explain how your teeth are expected to respond. What it is good for is making the plan visible so you can ask questions about it.
What We Do Not Have
We do not have an in-house hospital operating facility, and we do not offer general anesthesia. Cases needing either are referred.
We also do not use vibration devices, light devices, or similar accelerated-treatment products. The evidence for meaningful acceleration from those is weak, and we would rather not charge for something we cannot stand behind.
Frequently Asked Questions About Our Advanced Technology
Does a digital scan make you gag like impressions do?
Very rarely. There is no tray, no material setting in your mouth, and nothing sitting against the soft palate. The wand is small and you can ask us to stop at any point, which you cannot do once an impression has been seated. Patients who have gagged badly on impressions are usually fine with a scan.
Do you still need X-rays if you have a 3D scanner?
Yes, and they do different jobs. The scanner records the surfaces of your teeth and gums. It cannot see roots, bone, unerupted teeth, or the jaw joints, all of which sit inside the bone. A panoramic X-ray or a cone beam scan is what shows those.
What is a cone beam scan and will I need one?
It is a three-dimensional X-ray of your teeth and jaws taken in a single pass while you stand or sit still, usually under a minute. Whether you need one depends on your case. Adult expansion, impacted teeth, and surgical planning generally require it. A straightforward crowding case usually does not, and we will not take one just because we own the machine.
Are your aligners really made in the office?
For limited cases, yes. We design them here and fabricate them here, which is why turnaround is days. Comprehensive cases use manufactured systems such as Invisalign or Angel Aligners, because those have engineering behind them that an in-office lab does not replicate.
See It for Yourself
The easiest way to understand any of this is to have a scan taken and watch your teeth appear on the screen. The consultation is free. Call 813-867-0414 or request an appointment. We are at 10061 Beach Verbena Drive in Riverview.