Dental Laboratory Technicians

Overview Nature of Work Knowledge Areas Skills Utilized Job Activities Abilities Job Conditions Work Satisfaction Education/Training

When patients require a medical device to help them see clearly, chew and speak well, or walk, their healthcare providers send requests to medical, dental, and ophthalmic laboratory technicians. These technicians produce a variety of implements to help patients.

Medical appliance technicians construct, fit, maintain, and repair braces, artificial limbs, joints, arch supports, and other surgical and medical appliances. They follow prescriptions or detailed instructions from podiatrists, orthotists, prosthetists or other healthcare professionals for patients who need them because of a birth defect, disease, accident, or amputation. Podiatrists or orthotists request orthoses—braces, supports, corrective shoes, or other devices; while prosthetists order prostheses—replacement limbs, such as an arm, leg, hand, or foot. Medical appliance technicians who work with these types of devices are called orthotic and prosthetic (O&P) technicians. Other medical appliance technicians work with appliances, such as hearing aids, that help correct other medical problems.

For O&P technicians, creating orthoses and prostheses takes several steps. First, technicians construct or receive a plaster cast of the patient's limb or foot to use as a pattern. Increasingly, technicians are using digital files sent by the prescribing practitioner who uses a scanner and uploads the images using computer software. When fabricating artificial limbs or braces, O&P technicians utilize many different materials including plaster, thermoplastics, carbon fiber, acrylic and epoxy resins. More advanced prosthetic devices are electronic, using information technology. Next, O&P technicians carve, cut, or grind the material using hand or power tools. Then they weld the parts together and use grinding and buffing wheels to smooth and polish the devices. Next, they may cover or pad the devices with leather, felt, plastic, or another material. Finally, technicians may mix pigments according to formulas to match the patient's skin color and apply the mixture to create a cosmetic cover for the artificial limb.

After fabrication, medical appliance technicians test devices for proper alignment, movement, and biomechanical stability using meters and alignment fixtures. Over time the appliance will wear down, so technicians must repair and maintain the device. They also may service and repair the machinery used for the fabrication of orthotic and prosthetic devices.

Dental laboratory technicians fill prescriptions from dentists for crowns, bridges, dentures, and other dental prosthetics. First, dentists send a prescription or work authorization for each item to be manufactured, along with an impression or mold of the patient's mouth or teeth. With new technology, a technician may receive a digital impression rather than a physical mold. Then dental laboratory technicians, also called dental technicians, create a model of the patient's mouth by pouring plaster into the impression and allowing it to set. They place the model on an apparatus that mimics the bite and movement of the patient's jaw. The model serves as the basis of the prosthetic device. Technicians examine the model, noting the size and shape of the adjacent teeth, as well as gaps within the gumline. Based upon these observations and the dentist's specifications, technicians build and shape a wax tooth or teeth model, using small hand instruments called wax spatulas and wax carvers. The wax model is used to cast the metal framework for the prosthetic device.

After the wax tooth has been formed, dental technicians pour the cast and form the metal and, using small hand-held tools, prepare the surface to allow the metal and porcelain to bond. They then apply porcelain in layers to mimic the precise shape and color of a tooth. Technicians place the tooth in a porcelain furnace to bake the porcelain onto the metal framework, and then they adjust the shape and color with subsequent grinding and addition of porcelain to achieve a sealed finish. The final product is a nearly exact replica of the lost tooth or teeth.

In some laboratories, technicians perform all stages of the work, whereas in other labs, each technician does only a few. Dental laboratory technicians can specialize in one of five areas—orthodontic appliances, crowns and bridges, complete dentures, partial dentures, or ceramics. Job titles can reflect specialization in these areas. For example, technicians who make porcelain and acrylic restorations are called dental ceramists.

Ophthalmic laboratory technicians—also known as manufacturing opticians, optical mechanics, or optical goods workers—make prescription eyeglass or contact lenses. Ophthalmic laboratory technicians cut, grind, edge, polish, and finish lenses according to specifications provided by dispensing opticians, optometrists, or ophthalmologists. Although some lenses still are produced by hand, technicians are increasingly using automated equipment to make lenses. To make a pair of glasses, typically the technician cuts the prescription lenses, bevels the edges to fit the frame, dips each lens into dye if the prescription calls for tinted or coated lenses, polishes the edges, and combines the lenses and frame parts. Some ophthalmic laboratory technicians manufacture lenses for other optical instruments, such as telescopes and binoculars.

In small laboratories, technicians usually handle every phase of the operation. In large ones, in which virtually every phase of the operation is automated, technicians may be responsible for operating computerized equipment. Technicians also inspect the final product for quality and accuracy.

Ophthalmic laboratory technicians should not be confused with workers in other vision care occupations, such as ophthalmologists, optometrists, and dispensing opticians.

Work environment. Medical, dental, and ophthalmic laboratory technicians generally work in clean, well-lighted, and well-ventilated laboratories. They have limited contact with the public. Most salaried laboratory technicians work 40 hours a week, but a few work part time. At times, technicians wear goggles to protect their eyes, gloves to handle hot objects, or masks to avoid inhaling dust. They may spend a great deal of time standing. Medical appliance technicians should be particularly careful when working with tools because there is a risk of injury.

Dental technicians usually have their own workbenches, which can be equipped with Bunsen burners, grinding and polishing equipment, and hand instruments, such as wax spatulas and wax carvers. Some dental technicians have computer-aided milling equipment to assist them with creating artificial teeth.

1.	Read prescriptions or specifications, and examine models and impressions, to determine the design of dental products to be constructed.
2.	Fabricate, alter, and repair dental devices such as dentures, crowns, bridges, inlays, and appliances for straightening teeth.
3.	Test appliances for conformance to specifications and accuracy of occlusion, using articulators and micrometers.
4.	Place tooth models on apparatus that mimics bite and movement of patient's jaw to evaluate functionality of model.
5.	Melt metals or mix plaster, porcelain, or acrylic pastes, and pour materials into molds or over frameworks to form dental prostheses or apparatus.
6.	Prepare metal surfaces for bonding with porcelain to create artificial teeth, using small hand tools.
7.	Remove excess metal or porcelain, and polish surfaces of prostheses or frameworks, using polishing machines.
8.	Create a model of patient's mouth by pouring plaster into a dental impression and allowing plaster to set.
9.	Load newly constructed teeth into porcelain furnaces to bake the porcelain onto the metal framework.
10.	Build and shape wax teeth, using small hand instruments and information from observations or dentists' specifications.
11.	Apply porcelain paste or wax over prosthesis frameworks or setups, using brushes and spatulas.
12.	Fill chipped or low spots in surfaces of devices, using acrylic resins.
13.	Prepare wax bite-blocks and impression trays for use.
14.	Mold wax over denture set-ups to form the full contours of artificial gums.
15.	Train and supervise other dental technicians or dental laboratory bench workers.
16.	Rebuild or replace linings, wire sections, and missing teeth to repair dentures.
17.	Shape and solder wire and metal frames or bands for dental products, using soldering irons and hand tools.

[Back to Top]