Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Jan;30(1):47-50.
doi: 10.1111/jopr.13273. Epub 2020 Oct 23.

A Comparison of Conventionally Versus Digitally Fabricated Denture Outcomes in a University Dental Clinic

Wendy Auclair Clark  1 , Briana Brazile  2 , Desi Matthews  2 , Jonathan Solares  2 , Ingeborg J De Kok  1
Affiliations

A Comparison of Conventionally Versus Digitally Fabricated Denture Outcomes in a University Dental Clinic

Wendy Auclair Clark et al. J Prosthodont. 2021 Jan.

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this retrospective, cross-sectional study is to evaluate if there is a difference in number of visits (including fabrication and postoperative) and remake rate when comparing conventionally fabricated and digitally fabricated complete dentures by dental students in a predoctoral student dental clinic.

Materials and methods: This two-year retrospective cross-sectional study consisted of a chart review for patients receiving maxillary and/or mandibular complete dentures between 2017 and 2019 (n = 314) at the UNC Adams School of Dentistry predoctoral student clinic. No control group was determined for this study. Data were extracted for 242 conventional dentures and 39 digital dentures. Objective treatment outcomes were obtained for each included denture: the number of patient appointments from preliminary impressions to denture placement, the number of postoperative visits, any complications noted, and any need for remakes. Fisher's Exact Test and Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel analysis were completed with statistical significance set at p < 0.05.

Results: For the number of visits from preliminary impression to placement, 50% of conventionally fabricated dentures had 6 or more visits, while only 5% of digitally fabricated dentures had 6 or more visits. This difference for the number of patient visits was statistically significant (p < 0.05). Additionally, conventionally fabricated dentures required an average of 2-3 postoperative visits, whereas digitally fabricated dentures required 1-2 postoperative visits. This difference was also statistically significant (p < 0.05). For the number of dentures requiring remake, there was no statistical difference (p = 0.1904).

Conclusions: When comparing conventionally fabricated and digitally fabricated dentures in the predoctoral clinic, the digitally fabricated dentures required fewer patient appointments from start to finish, and fewer postoperative appointments than conventionally fabricated dentures. Fewer visits may be an important consideration for patients, especially those with limited access to care.

Keywords: CAD/CAM; Dental education; dental student; digital dentistry; removable prosthetics.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Brownstein SA, Murad A, Hunt RJ: Implementation of new technologies in U.S. dental school curricula. J Dent Educ 2015;79:259-264
    1. Iacopino AM: The influence of “new science” on dental education: current concepts, trends, and models for the future. J Dent Educ 2007;71:450-462
    1. Fernandez MA, Nimmo A, Behar-Horenstein LS: Digital denture fabrication in pre- and postdoctoral education: a survey of US dental schools. J Prosthodont 2016;25:83-90
    1. Maeda Y, Minoura M, Tsutsumi OM, et al: A cad/cam system for removable denture. Part I: fabrication of complete dentures. Int J Prosthodont 1994;7:17-21
    1. Goodacre CJ, Garbacea A, Naylor WP, et al: Cad/cam fabricated complete dentures: concepts and clinical methods of obtaining required morphological data. J Prosthetics Dent 2012;107:34-46

LinkOut - more resources