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
. 2023 Aug;87(8):1200-1209.
doi: 10.1002/jdd.13240. Epub 2023 May 16.

Virtual reality simulation of panoramic radiographic anatomy for dental students

Noura Alsufyani  1   2 , Sarah Alnamlah  3 , Sarah Mutaieb  3 , Raseel Alageel  3 , Mayson AlQarni  3 , Areej Bukhari  3 , Maram Alhajri  3 , Abdulrahman AlSubaie  3 , Meshari Alabdulkarim  3 , Asma'a Faden  4
Affiliations

Virtual reality simulation of panoramic radiographic anatomy for dental students

Noura Alsufyani et al. J Dent Educ. 2023 Aug.

Abstract

Purpose: This work aimed to utilize virtual reality (VR) in dental radiographic anatomical interpretation in junior dental students and test if it can enhance student learning, engagement, and performance.

Methods: VR software for panoramic anatomy was developed. Sixty-nine first-year dental students were divided into a control group (lecture-based) and an experimental group (VR) to learn panoramic radiographic anatomy. Both groups were then tested on knowledge via a 20-question quiz. Student feedback on VR experience was collected via an online survey.

Results: There was a statistically significant difference between lecture-based and VR students in the correct identification of anatomical landmarks. Lecture-based students scored higher in identifying the ear lobe, hyoid bone, condylar neck, and external oblique ridge, whereas VR students scored higher in identifying zygoma (Chi-squared test, p < 0.005). The VR group reported high evaluation on all perception items of the online feedback survey on their experience (Student t-test, p < 0.005).

Conclusions: Lecture-based students generally showed better performance in panoramic radiographic anatomy. Several structures were not correctly identified in both groups of novice students. The positive feedback of VR experience encourages future implementation in education to augment conventional methods of radiographic anatomy in dentistry with considerations to repeated exposures throughout undergraduate dental education.

Keywords: anatomical landmarks; dental education; panoramic radiograph; virtual reality.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

REFERENCES

    1. Perschbacher S. Interpretation of panoramic radiographs. Aust Dent J. 2012;57:40-45.
    1. Joda T, Gallucci GO, Wismeijer D, Zitzmann NU. Augmented and virtual reality in dental medicine: a systematic review. Comput Biol Med. 2019;108:93-100.
    1. McCloy R, Stone R. Science, medicine, and the future. Virtual reality in surgery. BMJ. 2001;323(7318):912-915.
    1. Feiner SK. Augmented reality: a new way of seeing. Sci Am. 2002;286(4):48-55.
    1. Bernardo A. Virtual reality and simulation in neurosurgical training. World Neurosurg. 2017;106:1015-1029.

LinkOut - more resources