By Liese Klein
With a tiny haptic vibration similar to a phone notification, the robotic arm locks into place. Guided millimeter by millimeter with 3D scanning, the robot is now ready to drill into bone at a precise angle and depth optimal for a dental implant, or replacement tooth anchored into the jaw.
“With this you know exactly where you are,” said Dr. Jacob Gady of West Hartford’s Connecticut Center for Oral, Facial and Implant Surgery. “It’s accurate, predictable and minimally invasive, and fast,” he said of the guided robotic system, called Yomi.
Gady’s practice at 80 S. Main St. is one of only about 60 nationwide currently using the Yomi system, the latest in a series of innovations that have made dentistry a proving ground for new technologies, materials and techniques. Patients seeking removal of wisdom teeth or dental implants can now benefit from 3D printing, image-guided surgery techniques and super-durable materials. Those dreaded dental procedures are also shorter and less invasive.