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Volume 3
Dentistry Case Report
Euro Dentistry 2019 & Dental Science 2019
July 15-16, 2019
July 15-16, 2019 | London, UK
27
th
Global Summit Expo on
&
27
th
EURO DENTISTRY CONGRESS
DENTAL SCIENCE AND DENTAL PRACTICE
How to make digital dentistry pay
Tussavir Tambra
Afterburner Dental Technologies, UK
T
he dental community is currently being swamped with clinical, research and marketing materials selling the dream of digital
dentistry. Dental equipment suppliers are bombarding dentists with a multitude of claims and counter claims about the digital
dentistry pathway. The push is to sell the hardware like intraoral scanners and milling machines into dental clinics. Once the sale
is made there is little assistance on how to make the technology benefit the clinic financially. Dentistry is a business and as such,
there has to be a return on investment combined with a clear, demonstrable benefit to the patient. Both sides of the equation are
equally important. This failure to demonstrate the true benefit of the digital pathway and how the dentist can make significant
savings on restorative costs has resulted in a poor uptake of new technologies. The rapid change in technology such as the shift
from light projection to video imaging in intraoral scanners has left most of the early adopters with obsolete technology and
created a climate of mistrust between dentists and the equipment manufacturers.
Dentists understand all the clinical benefits of a digital workflow from reducing patient discomfort, improved restoration accuracy,
surgical accuracy in dental implantology and simplified orthodontic treatment, however, this is not a clinical lecture. This lecture
will focus on the financial implications of becoming a Digital Dentist including understanding clinical pathways, better selection
of restorative materials, providing “same day dentistry” solutions and improved time management to avoid working more hours
and how this approach results in improved financial returns. The age-old adages “work smarter not harder” and “time is money”
are why the digital dentistry pathway is the way forwards for the solo practitioner and the Corporate / DSO world.
Biography
Tambra holds a master’s degree in Prosthodontics from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, is a GDC registered Specialist in
Prosthodontics and also holds Canadian registration in the province of British Columbia. He was also a Teaching Fellow at the
University of Alberta in Canada in the removable prosthodontics and dental implant departments for two years. His Master's research
was supported by the Nobel BioCare Centre of Excellence in Michigan and evaluated the wear properties of zirconia used in the
Procera pathway and various porcelains against human enamel. This was the start of a 20-year focus on the digital aspects of dentistry.
His main focus is on how to deliver advanced restorative techniques including those involving dental implants to the public in a more
cost-effective manner. He has published several articles and presented lectures at several national and international meetings, the
most prestigious being the Canadian Academy of Restorative and Prosthodontics (CARDP). He was the Clinical Vice President for the
Condor scanner. He is also the founder and Co-CEO of Afterburner Dental Technologies, a global company dedicated to the dental
professional to show how digital workflows in daily practice can improve clinical care but also generate increased revenue ethically.
dr.tambra@hotmail.co.ukNotes:
Dentistry Case Report, Volume 3