Trueness of maxillary complete dentures duplicated by using conventional and 3D printing techniques: A comparative in vitro study.

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

Duplicating complete dentures and achieving accurately fitting prostheses poses a challenge. Conventional methods are often time-consuming and susceptible to human error. Advancements in digital technology for denture fabrication offer a promising alternative to conventional duplication techniques, but studies comparing the methods are lacking.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this in vitro study was to compare the trueness of duplicated complete dentures using 3-dimensional (3D) printing technology with that of dentures duplicated using the conventional method.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A typodont was used to construct a maxillary complete denture using the conventional method. The denture was scanned using a desktop scanner, and the standard tessellation language (STL) file was considered the reference file. Each denture was duplicated using 3 techniques (10 in each group). In the first group, the denture was duplicated using the conventional technique; in the second group, the denture was printed as a single unit (monolithic) from a tooth-colored resin, and the denture flange was then veneered with pink resin; in the third group, the denture base was printed separately from the pink resin, and the teeth were printed as a single unit using tooth-colored resin. The denture base and the teeth were co-related using a positioning device. The duplicate dentures in the 3 groups were scanned, and the STL files were imported into a surface-matching software program to evaluate their trueness. Statistical analysis was done using 1-way ANOVA followed by the Tukey post hoc test (α=.05).

RESULTS

A significant difference (P<.001) was found in the trueness of the 3 duplication techniques, with the highest overall deviation recorded in the conventional denture group (0.73 ±0.06 mm) and the least deviation recorded in the monolithic denture group (0.21 ±0.04 mm). Deviations in the canine, first molar, and maxillary tuberosities were the lowest in the monolithic denture group (0.13 ±0.01 mm), (0.11 ±0.03 mm), (0.27 ±0.05 mm), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Using 3D printing technology for complete denture duplication has a promising outcome with the highest trueness reported with the monolithic denture. Comparative clinical studies are needed.