Space technology now being used to make dental implants faster, less invasive for patients | FOX 35 Orlando
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Space technology now being used to make dental implants faster, less invasive for patients

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Published  April 29, 2025 7:29pm EDT
Lake County
FOX 35 Orlando

Space tech speeds up, simplifies dental implants

Space-age technology is revolutionizing dentistry on Earth, with a Central Florida dentist among the first worldwide to use a robot for patient implants. FOX 35's Esther Bower has more information about this "out of the world" technology.

The Brief

    • A Clermont dentist is using space-inspired robotic technology to perform dental implants with greater precision and faster recovery times. 
    • The FDA-cleared system, called Yomi, uses haptic guidance to assist dentists while minimizing damage and improving patient outcomes.

LAKE COUNTY, Fla. - Technology from space is transforming dentistry here on Earth. A Central Florida dentist is one of the first in the world using a robot on the job to do implants for patients.

"You can take the best surgeon and pair him with robotic guidance, and you’re going to get perfect level results," said Clermont dentist, Dr. Shovon Kasem.

What is the robot arm like in action?

What we know:

At his Clermont dental practice on Tuesday, robot arms went inside a patient’s mouth. The bot was guided by Dr. Kasem to give a patient new dental implants in minutes instead of hours.

The system Dr. Kasem is using is the world's first and only robot-assisted dental surgical system cleared by the FDA. It was developed by the company Neocis, and the robot’s name is Yomi.

Dr. Shovon Kasem

"It just felt like I didn't have much done"

What they're saying:

"I’m not going to lie – a robot doing that is a little nerving," said patient, Sheny Alladin.

Like most, she had concerns about a robot going inside her mouth. But after her procedure at Restoration Dental in Clermont, she trusts Yomi.

"It just felt like I didn't have much done, I just had a cleaning done or something, it was a quick recovery," said Alladin.

Quick recovery is possible because the robot does less damage than human hands.

Dr. Kasem says it provides "microscopic level of precision and became very minimally invasive."

Astronauts on the ISS use the same tools known as "haptic technology" to control rovers and other devices that may be hard to see, similar to a dentist trying to see inside someone’s mouth.

"Hitting nerves, arteries and other landmarks that we wouldn’t want to drill into," said the doctor.

Yomi the robot never works alone. A dentist is always telling it what to do and where.

Alladin says the procedure went better than expected and she’s getting her life back with two new teeth.

"I can eat all my favorite foods," she concluded.

Yomi also tracks a patient that may be squirming around during the procedure. It stays on a set GPS path and will adjust that path if a patient changes their position.

STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 35 ORLANDO:

The Source: FOX 35's reporter Esther Bower met a patient and dentist at his practice in Clermont on 4/29 to learn more about the robot and see it in action.

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