Explains how crowns are made digitally: scanning the preparation, designing the crown in software, then milling or 3D printing it, followed by heat treatment, finishing and cementation. Compares chairside and laboratory systems in a table, gives preparation rules for milled crowns, and sets out advantages and limits of digital methods in a second table. A closing point notes that the same clinical requirements still apply.
Topic 45 of 75 in the MU Sofia syllabus for Preclinics of Dental Prosthetics (Dental Medicine, Year 2). The free AceMed note covers it in 5 sections, about 104 words (2 min of reading), with 13 flashcards.
In this note
Introduction
The digital chain
Chairside and laboratory systems
Preparation for a milled crown
Advantages and limits
Introduction
In digital fabrication the crown is designed on a computer (CAD, computer-aided design) and produced by a machine (CAM, computer-aided manufacturing). Wax, investing and casting are replaced by scanning, software and milling or printing.
Preparation for a milled crown
Smooth, rounded shapes the milling burs can follow: no sharp line angles or thin edges.
A clear, continuous shoulder or deep chamfer that the scanner can see; keep margins supragingival where possible and dry.
Enough uniform reduction for the minimum thickness of the chosen material.
Advantages and limits
Digital tools change how a crown is made, not what it must achieve: the same rules of preparation, fit, contour, contacts and occlusion still apply.
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