dental labs

Dental Labs: Foreign Versus Domestic (video)

January 31, 2012 By Catherine Hughes Leave a Comment

In the past, it has been reported that some dental crowns and bridges may be tainted with lead.

People quickly assumed the problem was with foreign dental labs, particularly those in China.

The Wealthy Dentist conducted a survey asking dentists a number of questions about foreign dental labs.

One dentist said, “Patients have been systematically kept in the dark when it comes to dental procedures. Patients should be given informed consent when choosing materials.”

Another dentist complained, “Too many dentists are accommodating low insurance payment schedules by buying materials and fabrications that are too cheap. It doesn’t seem to matter that it compromises the health of the patient.”

Click on Play to hear more of what dentists have to say about foreign dental labs –

What has been your experience with dental labs?

Filed Under: Dental Videos Tagged With: dental bridges, dental crown, dental crowns, dental labs, dental marketing, dentist, dentistry, dentists, lead, video marketing

Dental Materials Safety Concerns (video)

August 28, 2010 By Julie Frey 2 Comments

The safety of dental materials has been in the news due to concerns about BPA in sealants and composite and reports of dental crowns manufactured in foreign dental labs that may be contaminated with lead.

So we asked dentists who should be responsible for the safety of dental products. One third said the FDA, one quarter said dental labs should police themselves, and 41% said dentists should take responsibility.

“My local lab is placing 'made in America' on all of the return cases for the patients to see,” mentioned one dentist.

“Too many dentists are accommodating low dental insurance payment schedules by buying their dental materials and laboratory fabrications that are too cheap," complained another. "It doesn't seem to matter that it compromises the health of the patient."

Filed Under: Dental Videos Tagged With: BPA, dental labs, dental materials, lead

CEREC May Not Be Effective Dental Marketing

April 27, 2010 By Julie Frey 22 Comments

Dentists are split over whether CEREC is an effective dental marketing tool. In this survey, 58% of dentists said the name "Cerec" means nothing to the average dental patient.

But among dentists offering Cerec restorations, 61% think it's a useful dental marketing tool. And only 15% of Cerec dentists report they are disappointed with it.

Don't know what CEREC is? The name stands for Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramics. Cerec dentists use computer-assisted technology to fabricate a customized porcelain restoration, often a dental crown. You can get a Cerec restoration in a single appointment, while traditional porcelain crowns are fabricated by dental labs and require two appointments.
Learn more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CEREC

Here's what dentists have to say about CEREC:

“The idea is great, but the restorations are not close to the quality of lab-fabricated restorations.” (Tennessee dentist)
"It has been the best investment I have made in my practice." (General dentist)
“It only means something to the average patient if you call it ‘same day crown.’” (Minnesota dentist)
“Cerec is the greatest invention in the history of dentistry. Those who don't like it are either not willing to take the time to learn it or haven't bought it and need an excuse as to why.” (Illinois dentist)
“I am glad I got the Cerec, but there were times along the way I would have gladly given it back if I could have got a full refund. It definitely is where the future is going, so we need to master this technology.” (California dentist)
"I've replaced many fractured Cerec restorations that come into my practice." (General dentist)
“The best economic investment we ever made in our practice. It has allowed our practice to experience an 8% growth in 2009 while the majority of the practices in our state experienced a 30 to 40% decline.” (Michigan dentist)
“Puts you in the special list of dentists that are on top of the newest, the best and ahead of the crowd.” (Pennsylvania prosthodontist)
“Powder all the teeth and then the patient swallows and all the powder is gone and then you re-powder and they swallow and all the powder is gone…repeat ad infinitum until you get tired of it and throw your ($100,000) machine away.” (California dentist)
"The smartest thing I have EVER done in my career is to purchase (and master) a CEREC machine. The restorations are more precise, beautiful, and predictable than any lab… I get tons of referrals because I have one; it just continually blows my mind that more dentists have not clued into this. NO WAY would I practice without it." (General dentist)
"We've had Cerec for 1 1/2 years are are now pretty satisfied. But the learning curve was LONG and I'm still learning.” (New Mexico dentist)
"Initially I was disappointed with CEREC due to a steep learning curve, technical shortcomings and disruption to our normal scheduling routine. But now I must admit that with experience and the latest camera and software upgrades I love it, and I'm getting restorations that are often better than my lab. Patients really appreciate single visit dentistry and they are fascinated by the technology. It has reduced my lab bills significantly which more than offsets the cost of the machine." (General dentist)
"I do not think Cerec has the name recognition of Invisalign or Lumineers or Zoom tooth whitening, and therefore I think the name means nothing to the public at large." (General dentist)
"Few people know (or can remember) what a ‘CEREC’ is. Quite frankly, because it is a stupid acronym! Almost all people understand what a single visit crown is! If a company wishes to capture the market for this, then provide a moniker to do so.” (Nevada dentist)

Filed Under: Dental Surveys Tagged With: CEREC, crowns, dental labs, dental marketing, dentist, dentists

Foreign Dental Labs Cause a Stir Among Dentists (video)

June 13, 2009 By Jim Du Molin 3 Comments

In light of reports of dental crowns manufactured in Chinese dental labs that may be contaminated with lead, we conducted a survey of dentists on the topic of foreign dental laboratories.

Two out of three dentists think that the current publicity is just a tempest in a teapot, while the remainder expect it to be the next big health scandal.

Federal Employees Could Be Getting Foreign Dental Work

July 16, 2008 By Jim Du Molin 8 Comments

Government Dental Plan Soliciting Bids from Offshore Labs

The US government employs several million individuals. As their employer, it’s the government’s job to provide health care coverage to all of these people: soldiers and politicians, maintenance workers and administrators.

Health care benefits for federal employees are managed through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). There are seven insurance carriers that provide supplemental dental and vision benefits under the Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program (FEDVIP). Four of these are nationwide plans, and the other three provide coverage in certain regions.

Aetna Life Insurance Company
Government Employees Health Association, Inc. (GEHA)
MetLife Inc.
United Concordia Companies, Inc.
Group Health, Inc. (New York state area)
CompBenefits (Southeastern US)
Triple-S, Inc. (Puerto Rico)

I have heard that one of these dental insurance companies has been soliciting bids from offshore dental laboratories. They’re looking to provide a low-cost product option to their network of providers, and it’s nearly impossible to compete with the prices offered by some foreign labs. ($29 dental crowns from China, anyone?)

There are any number of reasons why this might be cause for concern, but chief among them is the Buy American Act. Passed in 1933, this legislation states that the US government should preferentially purchase American products over foreign-made goods. Though exceptions can be made for price or quality issues, the basic principle is that America’s government should patronize American businesses whenever possible.

About GEHA

Since 2007, the Government Employees Health Association (GEHA) Connection Dental Federal^SM dental plan has provided comprehensive dental benefits for federal employees. (GEHA also offers federal employees health plan options.) GEHA’s proprietary Connection Dental® network includes more than 43,000 dental provider locations across the country. GEHA has grown to be the second-largest national health insurance plan serving the federal market.

With reports surfacing that some dental crowns and bridges may be contaminated with lead, there are also health concerns about outsourcing dental restorations. The FDA doesn’t directly regulate overseas labs, and the National Association of Dental Labs warns that there are significant holes in the FDA’s oversight of dental lab manufacturing.

And yet we have GEHA shopping for cut-rate bids from foreign dental labs… Am I the only one who sees a problem here?