Dentist evaluates TRIOS Shade Measurement and HD Photos

3Shape's latest release of the TRIOS® digital impression solution was presented recently in Chicago Midwinter, where especially the new Shade Measurement and HD Photo features created a stir among dental professionals.

Already before Chicago, selected dentists were given the opportunity to try out our new TRIOS^® in their own clinics.  However, Dr. Simon Kold of the Herning Implant Center went even further. Challenged by a difficult tooth discoloration case, Dr. Kold saw a unique opportunity to gauge the new TRIOS^® Shade Measurement against the conventional method.  We spoke with Dr. Simon Kold about his evaluation procedure and the results. This is his story...

How did you evaluate the Shade Measurement feature?

Quite coincidentally, at about the same time I was asked to try out the new TRIOS^®, I was met with a perfect case that was quite demanding in terms of getting the shades right. A young male patient, with otherwise perfect teeth, had a noticeably discolored central incisor that he wished replaced. The fact that the case involved a solitary tooth, and it was at the front, put extra stress on achieving perfect shade matching to the existing teeth – so it was just the kind of case I needed to test the new digital Shade Measurement method through a harsh trial situation. 

Tell us about the actual test
The beauty of the test lay in its simplicity. Basically, I worked with my lab to create two new crowns for the same treatment and then compared how each one looked in the patient's mouth. One crown was created using the traditional method I always used before – i.e., by matching the shades manually and sending the found shade values plus patient photos to the lab. The other crown was created using the 3Shape TRIOS^® digital Shade Measurement, and TRIOS^® HD Photos. 

Tell us about your experiences with using the new TRIOS^® functionalities 
Shade measurement couldn't be easier, because it happens automatically while I am scanning. All the shades are stored in the impression, and I can display the shade values in the most significant tooth areas which I select. The HD Photos feature is equally easy to use. Just position the scanner tip and snap the picture. In this case, I performed a pre-preparation scan and took an array of HD Photos to show esthetic details. After preparing the tooth, I only needed to rescan over the prep area, because TRIOS^® automatically merges new scans with the previous pre-preparation scan, saving me loads of time. At this stage, I took additional HD Photos to get a clear picture of the margin line area.

Tell us about the results
I work with a great lab, and I have always been taken aback by their ability to produce crowns with well-matched shades. Therefore, I was quite eager to see how this crown that was based on TRIOS'^® Shade Measurement would cope against an equivalent shaded in the traditional way. To be honest – both crowns looked fantastic – on the model and in the patient's mouth. However, on very close inspection and under optimal lighting, I noted very slight unintentional shadowing on the traditionally made crowns.  So in this particular case – TRIOS^® actually came out a slight winner.

What did you conclude?
Well, first of all, I am very happy to know that I am equipped with a shade measurement solution that saves me an abundance of time and lets me achieve results that are at least as good as the slower and less handy traditional method. Just to double-check our findings, we ran a similar test with another patient shortly after – and ended with a similar positive outcome. The great thing about the new TRIOS^® is that Shade Measurement and HD Photos allow me to easily convey so much more information along with significant details to the lab together with the digital impression – information I capture while I am scanning anyway.

In our clinic, we have been taking almost all of our impressions digitally, and the benefits for our business have been enormous. But now, the direction 3Shape is taking by adding other functionalities that one can perform while scanning, is simply taking the advantages of digital dentistry to a whole new level.

Before treatment – the patient with a discolored central incisor

Before preparation of the tooth – Dr. Kold performed a pre-preparation
scan and took HD Photos to capture details about the original situation.

Scanning after preparation, with an additional HD Photo for easy margin-line detection during design.

On the TRIOS^® screen, selecting the relevant areas on the neighbor incisor
brings forth the captured shade values that the lab can use to make a well-matched crown.

Two crowns created – Left: based on TRIOS^® Shade Measurement.
Right: based on the traditional shade-matching methods

Comparison in the mouth – The crown in the TOP picture is based on TRIOS^® Shade
Measurement, and crown in the BOTTOM picture is based on the traditional shade-matching methods

Seated - The final crown based on TRIOS^® Shade Measurement