Farhad Boltchi, D.M.D. I do...or at least today I did.
We placed implants in sites #7 and #10 to replace congenitally missing laterals. This case was done fully guided (i.e. with guided implant placement) using the Anatomage planning software and guides (the clear ones below) and the BioHorizons guided surgery system...I also used the Co-Diagnostix software to fabricate another guide (the blue one below) to evaluate that software and the resulting guides and it was dead on as well...The Co-Diagnostix software is nice because it allows the in-house design and fabrication of the guides...but since I don't have a 3D printer yet I outsource the printing of the guides...the cost per guide is ~$100 with a 24 hour turn-around time but the software costs $7K...I had to pay a rush fee of $200 for a 24 hour turn-around time for the Anatomage guide so the total cost for that guide was ~$550 and that software costs $5-7K.
A SiCat Classic guide or Optiguide would have been just as accurate and my original plan was to use an Optiguide...but we had to get this patient in sooner and we therefore couldn't meet the SiCat turn-around time table.
Due to my teaching activities and the number of implants I place I try out a lot of different softwares and guides...But there is no question that for the CEREC dentist or someone who owns a Sirona CBCT machine the most accurate and cost-effective guides are the SiCat guides...You just have to pre-plan accordingly to allow for their turn-around time table.
