Dental laboratory technicians specialize in making oral prosthetic devices such as crowns, dentures, bridges, and veneers, a job that requires good dexterity and coordination, and excellent attention to detail.
As with most other dental assistant careers, the role of the dental laboratory technician is to provide assistance to a dentist. While other careers involve administrative duties or patient care, however, the dental laboratory technician has an entirely different type of job. Dental laboratory technicians rarely work with patients; instead, their work is based in the lab, and involves designing and creating dental devices according to patient needs.
The dental laboratory technician designs devices such as full and partial dentures, bridges, crowns, veneers, and corrective orthodontic devices. They must follow detailed instructions that include patient measurements and impressions taken from the patient’s mouth, and design devices that have the proper functionality and look attractive, too. The dental laboratory technician works with materials such as wax and plastic, metal alloys (including precious metals), porcelain, stainless steel, and polymers.
To create a single device, the technician must first create a three dimensional model of the patient’s mouth, using a mold of the patient’s mouth as a guide. Next the technician uses the 3D model as a guide for making a dental device that exactly fits the patient. A perfect fit is absolutely crucial, otherwise the device will not be usable.
For dental laboratory technicians, manual dexterity and hand-eye coordination are extremely important attributes. The majority of the technician’s time is spent designing and building prosthetic devices for which a perfect fit is absolutely essential, so close attention to detail and the ability to focus for long periods of time are also important. Good eyesight is essential, as is excellent color vision, due to the need for matching the color of a prosthetic device with the color of a patient’s teeth.
To become a dental laboratory technician requires two years of study. These can be completed at a university, community college, technical college, vocational school, or dental school, to gain a certificate or Associate’s degree. Some institutions also offer four year degrees, which are ideal for anyone who wants more thorough training or wants to specialize in a particular type of prosthetic device. Most institutions require only a high school diploma for entry.
Certification can be obtained from the National Board for Certification in Dental Laboratory Technology by passing an examination to become a Certified Dental Technician.