I've been wanting to disrupt orthodontistry for quite a long time. With the state of 3d scanners, 3d printers, 3d software modeling, why hasn't the market price of orthodontist treatments dropped to cost-of-materials yet? As soon as at least one satisfactory / integrated open-source stack exists I think it's only a matter of time before it does...
I don't know if this is what you mean but in Japan many dentists have machines to make tooth crowns. Not sure how common that is in the west. I went to a dentist in SF, they did something and then I had to come back in 2 weeks after they made the crown. Been to several dentists in Japan where they could make the crown while you wait 20-30 mins
They do happen in the west as well. It is faster/cheaper to print crowns/etc, but I don't believe it's generally on par with an expert Dental Technician yet.
The cost of material is only smaller part of the price. High price has more to do with the imbalance between the supply and demand. Supply growth is limited by the number of orthodontists. This is due to the fact that every orthodontic treatment requires human expert to oversee and manage it. SmileDirectClub is trying to disprove this last assumption, and we still have to see if they manage it.
