The End of the Temporary Crown: How Same-Day Dentistry Is Phasing Out the Most Hated Step in Restoration
Restorative Dentistry | 3 min read
For decades, the dental crown process meant two appointments and a temporary crown to bridge the gap — a plastic placeholder that fell off, stained, and made every meal a calculated risk. Same-day 3D-printed dentistry is quietly retiring that middle step.
Why the Temporary Existed in the First Place
The temporary crown was never a clinical decision — it was a logistics workaround. The prepped tooth had to be protected for the two to three weeks a lab needed to mill and ship the permanent restoration. The temporary was a patch, not a treatment.
What Changes With a Chairside Workflow
In a chairside same-day workflow, the lab cycle collapses. The scan, design, print, and post-process happen in the operatory in under two hours. The permanent restoration goes in during the same visit. Workflows like SprintRay's ceramic crown system — part of the broader digital dentistry ecosystem — make the temporary stage structurally unnecessary.
What the Patient Actually Feels
One numbing, not two.
No "don't chew on that side" instructions for three weeks.
No temporary popping off at dinner.
No second day off work for the seat appointment.
The Bigger Pattern
Campaigns like SprintRay's recent "Close the Gap" launch with NHL star Drew Doughty have pulled attention to the headline — restorations in a single visit. But the real shift is in the small steps the patient never hears about anymore. The temporary crown is one of them, and it's not coming back. More clinical breakdowns of the workflow are on the SprintRay blog, with the full product ecosystem at sprintray.com.
