Matthew Parr, dentist and owner of Surf City Dental, understands the value of technology and credits the success of his practice on being an early adopter of new trends in dentistry.
 
Over the past 10 years, the Surf City practice has embraced a technology shift that changed his rural dental office to a modern facility offering general and cosmetic dentistry plus in-house milling, 3D X-rays, intraoral scanners, digital photography and now chairside 3D printing.
 
Digital dentistry, Parr said, has streamlined his dental processes providing faster, higher quality results while saving money for his practice and his patients.
 
Parr sees digital dentistry as the future of dentistry, consolidating preparation, fabrication and delivery all in the same day.
 
Parr’s newest investment in dental technology is a 3D printer he acquired in early 2021 to print dentures, partials, night guards, retainers and surgical stents.
 
While Parr says that 3D printing is still in the early adopter stage for his industry, he believes now is the right time to invest.
 
The dental 3D printing market is expected to reach $930 million worldwide by the end of 2025, according to a report from consulting firm QY Research.
 
Parr said he expects that 3D printing will become more common in all health facilities in the coming years.
 
“Each time we have embraced new technology, we have seen both accuracy and patient experience go up. We wouldn’t invest in a technology if it didn’t result in better quality and a simpler process,” he said.
 
Parr labels 3D printing a double win, improving both workflow and patient experience by reducing wait time and improving accuracy.
 
“Most everyone remembers needing a goopy impression at one point in their dental care. That’s no more,” he said.
 
If 3D digital scans of a patient’s mouth, made by a small wand, are already on file, all it takes is a phone call when the dog decides to use a retainer as a chew toy. An assistant in the office simply prints a new retainer that’s ready for pickup in one hour. Dentures take a little longer, but the process is essentially the same.
 
Parr, who has also been milling crowns and bridges in-house for the past six years, points to the amount of control that technology has afforded to his team.
 
“We are able to be very accurate. We can change things in the moment,” he said.
 
The patient doesn’t have to leave the chair. Procedures that used to take two or three visits are now completed in one.
 
Parr recalls earlier in his career when procedures like crowns were reliant on third-party dental labs and outside resources.
 
“Very little was made in the dental office,” he said. “And now, 10 years into my career, most things are fabricated and delivered right here in the office.”
 
That has helped his practice avoid the current supply chain issues.
 
 Surf City Dental, as all dental practices, is highly reliant on materials, everything from cotton rolls to saliva suctions and materials for crowns and dentures.
 
“We don’t have supply chain issues when we are using our own materials to make parts,” Parr said. “We are not as impacted by shortages, manufacturing problems and trade embargoes because we place bulk orders versus waiting for the daily mail to bring supplies.”
 
Parr also has more control over resources by having his own equipment. He invests in education for himself and his staff, essentially training his team of 13 to do jobs that used to be outsourced.
 
“We are no longer impacted by outside labor issues because our staff does the lab work. We are embracing each new digital improvement to our workflow as we aim to eliminate supply chain and third-party lab issues,” he said. “We keep working while all else slows down.”