London-based Maida Smiles has invested £60,000 in cutting-edge machinery to boost its world-class dental services.
The Maida Vale clinic is a leading private dental practice specialising in cosmetic dentistry and facial aesthetics.
It has made a series of new investments, including an award-winning KaVo OP 3D X-Ray machine and a high-definition iTero Element 2 oral scanner.
Precision across a wide range of dental procedures
Founder and Principal Dentist Pedro Gutierres said the cash injection will help drive precision, speed and accuracy across a wide range of dental procedures. It will further insulate clinicians and patients from the Covid pandemic, bringing more operations in-house.
“This investment signals Maida Smiles’ firm commitment to delivering the highest dental care and specialist cosmetic treatment standards,” he said. “We are passionate about innovation and utilising the latest technology to deliver the best patient results.
“Our new 3D X-ray machine will enable fast image review, appearing automatically following the scan. This form of imagery is particularly helpful in many areas, including orthodontic procedures, surgical planning and the treatment of impacted teeth. It further helps the diagnosis of temporomandibular or jawbone disorders, as well as the accurate placement of dental implants.
Why 3D visualization is so important?
3D visualization plays an important role in locating the origin of pain or disease, alongside the detection, measurement and treatment of tumours in the jaw. It further helps compute data for bone structure and health, reconstructive surgery, root canal therapy, bone graft and the evaluation of sinus, jaw or nasal cavity concerns.
“Separately, our intraoral scanner system will simplify and speed up the modelling of oral cavities aiding restorative work. It will also help our patients visualize their new smiles, with ultra-fast processing times performing full arch scans in 60 seconds. Intraoral digital scans provide highly accurate dental measurements, and we will use the system in conjunction with eLAB photo imaging software to improve the accuracy and precision of cosmetic work.
“The eLAB system is very important because it helps us achieve more consistent and reliable shade-matching results compared to the more conventional use of shade guides. This unique approach is fast becoming the new standard for shade management in restorative dentistry. Its universal nature also offers applications in purely clinical areas as well, such as for the selection of direct composites or for monitoring and documenting tooth bleaching.”
More functions in-house
Mr Gutierres said the latest investments provide further reinforcement from Covid, enabling the clinic to bring more functions in-house, reducing human interaction and threat of infection. Patients also benefit from the technology which will speed up assessments, evaluations and treatment plans, in turn reducing the frequency of appointments and exposure.
The latest investment comes shortly after the firm installed a bespoke air-extraction system helping boost hygiene standards during the Covid pandemic. This system is designed to remove potentially harmful contaminants and ensure constant fresh air circulation.
“We can confidently say we offer one of the safest dental environments for our patients, greatly reducing the risk of Covid infection,” said Dr Pedro. “We have delivered a rigorous overhaul to working practices to prioritise safety. Key interventions include the introduction of an online ‘Remote Consultation’ system to avoid exposure and spread of the virus. This easy-to-use virtual system works with a few simple steps and some photos sent via your smartphone, taking just minutes to complete. We are also strong advocates of ‘slow dentistry’ ensuring small volumes of patients at any one time and prioritising patient care, while also allocating special time slots for our most vulnerable patients.”
