Intraoral Scanners: The Key to Dentistry's Digital Revolution

Dentistry is undergoing a radical evolution with the adoption of digital technologies and, in particular, intraoral scanners (IOSs) skyrocketing worldwide. In some developed countries, as many as 40% to 50% of practitioners are using these devices, and this percentage is expected to continue to rise globally.1 With considerable advancement having occurred in dentistry over the past decade, this is an exciting time for the profession. Dentistry is dramatically changing, and with the advent of AI diagnostics, intraoral scanning data, 3D printing, and CAD/CAM software, it is highly conceivable that diagnostic methods, treatment planning, and treatment execution will continue to rapidly change over the course of the next 5 to 10 years. For practitioners still without a scanner, it is time to accept the inevitable and make the investment. It is indeed an interesting time to be a dentist.