Case Consultation Workflow

Initial consultation

1. Take intra-oral scans or impressions. We only accept good-quality PVS or Impregum impressions, with 2 to 3mm of gingiva all round, covering all teeth (including 8’s if present). Take special care to avoid drag, bubbles, etc., inferior impressions may be rejected and new ones requested.
2. Take the required quality-control photos (8 photos).
3. Gather any other supporting documentation you feel the case needs (x-rays, etc.).

Post consultation

1. If you took impressions, email smile@smileclub.co.za for an impression collection, we’ll book a courier.
2. Create the case on the portal: log on, use the photos and any supporting digital documentation to create a new case, and put all digital information into one .zip file. Include STL scans in the initial .zip if you have them. Rename the file patients_name.zip for normal cases or patients_name_ref.zip for refinements (the file name must be unique for every case). Contact the team if unsure how to use the file.
3. If scans aren’t loaded manually, they can be sent to the lab to be loaded (contact the lab for connection assistance based on your scanner type).
4. Impressions sent to the lab are digitally scanned and loaded onto the case you created.
5. Treatment planning proceeds once all information has been loaded onto the case.

IMPRESSION QUALITY

Impression-quality standards

Your impression or scan is the foundation your entire case is built on. Distortions, voids or missing margins lead to ill-fitting aligners and avoidable refinements, so getting records right the first time saves time for everyone. We only accept good-quality PVS or Impregum impressions, with 2 to 3mm of gingiva all round, covering all teeth, including the 8’s if they are present. Take special care to avoid drag, bubbles and similar faults, inferior impressions may be rejected and new ones requested. Before you arrange a collection, inspect the impression carefully and check that all anatomy is present.

Inspect every record against the points below before you send it. Alginate impressions are rejected because they distort too much. Look for air bubbles, double impressions, missing anatomy, drag, push-through, or blended tooth and gingiva. A record that reads cleanly here is a record that moves straight into planning.

• Alginate impressions are rejected, they distort too much
• Use the correct tray size, with the rear molars covered
• Overflow both ends of the tray to capture the distal of the second molars, and 8’s if present
• If 8’s are present, we need at least half of them
• We need to see 2 to 4mm of gingival margin
• If possible, provide a good bite registration for digitising

SUBMISSION TO PLAN

From submission to treatment plan

Once your records and case are on the platform, the workflow follows a clear sequence. Treatment planning proceeds once all information has been loaded onto the case. The order appears under “Sent for Design”, the lab adds the scans or scans of impressions, and treatment planning begins, around 72 hours. Once planned, the case moves to Needs Approval, where you can review the 3D simulation, the IPR required and at which stage, attachment positions, and a downloadable treatment-plan PDF.

1. Create the case on the portal with your quality-control images and scans in one .zip file, named for the patient.
2. The lab adds the scans, or scans of your impressions, onto the case you created.
3. Treatment planning begins once all information is loaded, around 72 hours.
4. The case moves to Needs Approval. Review the 3D simulation, IPR, attachment positions and the treatment-plan PDF.
5. Approve and send to manufacture, send the plan link to the patient or a peer for review, or request a redesign.