FAQ
What records does a dental lab need?
A straight answer first, then the context behind it, from the technicians who do the work.
THE SHORT ANSWER
A dental lab needs a prescription (required by law in most states), accurate impressions or a digital scan file, a bite registration, shade information, and relevant clinical photos. For implant cases, add the implant system name, platform size, and any CBCT-derived scan body data. Complete records reduce remake risk and cut turnaround time by eliminating back-and-forth requests.
THE CONTEXT
What sits behind it
For restorative cases like crowns and bridges, the core record set is a signed lab prescription, opposing and working impressions or intraoral scan files (STL or PLY), an occlusal bite registration, and a shade tab reference with at least one clinical photo in natural light. Missing any one of these stalls fabrication. At Dani Dental, an incomplete prescription triggers a same-day call to the sending office so the case never sits idle waiting on paperwork.
Implant cases require additional detail. The lab needs the implant manufacturer name, the specific implant line, and the platform diameter, because scan body libraries are system-specific. A custom abutment designed on the wrong library fails at seating. Surgically guided cases also benefit from pre-op CBCT data shared early, which allows the lab to begin planning the prosthetic emergence profile before the scan body impression is even taken.
For full-arch All-on-X cases, the record set expands again: facial midline photos, full-face retracted photos, vertical dimension of occlusion measurements, and an existing denture or wax-up for reference if available. Prosthodontists and oral surgeons sending complex arch cases to Dani Dental can expect a pre-production checklist within 24 hours of case receipt, confirming every record is on file before milling begins.
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What records does a dental lab need?
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This question is one piece of a larger workflow. The pillar page covers materials, turnaround, and how we build the case to your specification.
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