VOLKSCROWN

Have any of you come across this?
I first heard the term five years ago in Las Vegas. With the wonder of Google, I have found that it was probably first referenced in 2008 by Dr Rella Christensen. Nothing more recent. Why?


In 2015 I was in Las Vegas for the Sironaworld Cerec conference along with 5000 other dentists. It was the 30th annual event, and the Omnicam was released superseding my Blue cam, which was preceded by a Red Cam.
The Omnicam was a massive improvement, and now there a Primescan which is capable of far more than I am prepared to attempt, or my employer to buy. 
Volks was the term used as it was for the people. It means that it was affordable for the majority of the public as in Volkswagen, not Porche. Both are functional, but one could argue one is more aesthetic and innovative than the other as well as is a different pricing structure. 

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Dr Rella was extremely enthusiastic about the Volks crown. She had set up a non-profit organisation CRA employing 40 scientists and staff with a network of 400 clinicians.
The volkscrown was a hybrid material, in this case, 3Ms Lava Ultimate, which I was starting to have difficulty in the UK with supplies. The reason was apparent in the lecture, as there were failures! 
I have only read the article from 2008 today, and it reports the "failures" I have experienced. But they are manageable and repairable as you haven't removed the usual amount of tooth structure. I spoke to Dr Christensen at the end of the lecture. The reason for failures was predominantly debonding, and with that clearly, some lawyers were sniffing around. The reason for debonding was an incorrect procedure carried out by dentists, probably male as they hadn't read the basic instructions. The outcome was possibly as 3M were anxious about getting sued, rather than the dentist, they withheld the product. The opposite of the other main digital technology of clear aligners where while the treatment plan is by distant AI using GANs, the responsibility of the outcome is with the dentist.

I fitted a few all-ceramic Dicor crowns in the past, and they did fail, and I quietly stopped making them as I thought it was my technique. If I went on Facebook, I would have known better, but it was twenty years ago. The crowns I have fitted more recently have had greater success with similar material to Dicor because they are milled, and not made in a furnace. The other obvious advantage is it's a single visit. 


As with most technology, it will continue to advance and with new features. But there may be the alternative to get last years model at a reduced price which is still excellent, similar to electric toothbrushes. Think of your phone and your contract, perhaps intraoral scanners may be leased in the same way? For the vast majority of the public and dentists, the technology is good enough now. And concerning learning new technology, it's all online. 




Volks crown Article 2008


http://cdocs-magazine.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/2008/CEREC-Magazine-Q3-2008.pdf
DR Rella Christensen
https://www.dentaledglobal.com/speakers/35-dr-rella-christensen
3M release
https://multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/1198023O/lava-ultimate-restorative-change-of-indication-notice.pdf