Dental practice optimizes in-house restorations with Vident's VITA 3D-Master® Shade Guide, VITABLOCS® RealLife

Founder Dr. Anthony Hatch has transformed his new Scripps Rock Dental office in San Diego, Calif. from a conventional business park office with a white-walled interior into a vibrant, colorful space that sings. The move from Hatch Dental on Wexford Street to the new Scripps Rock Dental in Scripps Ranch was a labor of love. With everything from musically inspired artwork to traditional and trendy guitars on the walls, Scripps Rock Dental seems to be hitting all the right notes with its patients.

Known for their very friendly office environment, Dr. Hatch and his colleagues run a general practice, treating patients from 4 to 90 years old, and repeatedly receive favorable reviews from patients. Dr. Hatch makes sure each patient leaves fully satisfied with the work and experience.

Dr. Hatch particularly enjoys restorative dentistry and CAD/CAM porcelain work, choosing only to use products and materials that support his practice philosophy as a quality, aesthetic-minded doctor. For that, he counts on VITA materials for their proven track record of reliability and success. Dr. Hatch’s incorporates the VITA 3D-Master Shade System into his practice regimen, which he describes as the most reliable system on the market. In addition, he uses VITA machinable blocks because their tight color match to the shade system offers seamless, consistent results. A respected CEREC doctor, Dr. Hatch mentors other dentists in the application of CAD/CAM technology and lectures nationally about the merits of the CEREC system and software, using both in his daily practice.

Striving for an environment that is highly professional and fun, Dr. Hatch and his office manager wife, Laura, have designed a space that makes their patients feel comfortable and helps to ease their fears. Background music ranges from Elvis Costello and Frank Sinatra to Elvis Presley and other classic artists. A big proponent of technology, Dr. Hatch uses the latest equipment on the market, including digital x-rays, the newest CAD/CAM improvements and the most up-to-date CEREC 4.0 software.

Recently, a patient who is a professional dancer came into Scripps Rock Dental for some very important dental work. The patient had a crown on one of her front teeth and did not like how it looked aesthetically. While the crown fit pretty well, it was very unattractive when the light hit it. As a dancer, the patient’s smile is an important part of her professional appearance, so she wanted to have it fixed.

The challenge was to match the color as closely as possible, and to complete the restoration in just two hours. Dr. Hatch cleared his schedule and got to work. He started with the VITA 3D-Master Shade System to match her tooth color, and then reproduced the tooth using the CEREC system and a VITABLOCS RealLife CAD/CAM block. Dr. Hatch felt that the RealLife block offered the most attractive aesthetic for this kind of anterior restoration.

The patient was stressed about getting the restoration done on time and having it look good. For Dr. Hatch, the restoration was predictable and routine – everything went as planned. Dr. Hatch was able to complete the entire restoration in-house in about two hours and the patient went on to perform that weekend, lighting up the stage with her smile.

With a dental practice that combines the latest in dental technology with quality VITA products and a warm, inviting environment, Dr. Hatch and his staff are looking forward to a record-breaking year.