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Journal of Prosthodontics : Official... Jan 2021A virtual articulator is a computer software tool that is capable of reproducing the relationship between the jaws and simulating jaw movement. It has gradually gained... (Review)
Review
A virtual articulator is a computer software tool that is capable of reproducing the relationship between the jaws and simulating jaw movement. It has gradually gained research interest in dentistry over the past decade. In prosthodontics, the virtual articulator should be considered as an additional diagnostic and treatment planning tool to the mechanical articulator, especially in complex cases involving alterations to the vertical dimension of occlusion. Numerous authors have reported on the available digital methodologies used for the assembly of virtual arch models in a virtual articulator, focusing their attention on topics such as the virtual facebow and digital occlusal registration. To correctly simulate jaw movement, the jaw models have to be digitalized and properly mounted on the virtual articulator. The aim of this review was to discuss the current knowledge surrounding the various techniques and methodologies related to virtual mounting in dentistry, and whether virtual articulators will become commonplace in clinical practice in the future. This review also traces the history of the virtual articulator up to its current state and discusses recently developed approaches and workflows for virtual mounting based on current knowledge and technological devices.
Topics: Dental Articulators; Dental Occlusion; Jaw Relation Record; Models, Dental; Patient Care Planning; Prosthodontics; Vertical Dimension
PubMed: 32827222
DOI: 10.1111/jopr.13240 -
BMC Oral Health Jan 2022Patient- and technology-related parameters influence the successful implementation of virtual implant planning and guided implant surgery. Besides data processing and... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Patient- and technology-related parameters influence the successful implementation of virtual implant planning and guided implant surgery. Besides data processing and computer aided design of drill guides as described in Part I, the possibilities and limitations for prosthetic set-up and virtual implant planning are essential (Part II).
METHODS
The following software systems were examined using two different clinical situations for implant therapy: coDiagnostiX™, DentalWings, Canada (CDX); Simplant Pro™, Dentsply, Sweden (SIM); Smop™, Swissmeda, Switzerland (SMP); NobelClinician™, Nobel Biocare, Switzerland (NC); Implant Studio, 3Shape, Denmark (IST). Assessment criteria geared towards interfaces and integrated tools for prosthetic set-up and virtual implant planning.
RESULTS
A software interface for an individual virtual prosthetic set-up was provided by two systems (CDX, IST), whereas the set-up of standardized teeth was provided by four systems (CDX, SIM, SMP, IST). Alternatively, a conventional set-up could be scanned and imported. One system could solely work with the digitization of a conventional set-up for virtual implant planning (NC). Stock abutments could be displayed for implant planning, but none of the tested software systems provided tools for the design of an individual abutment. All systems displayed three-dimensional reconstructions or two-dimensional cross-sections with varying orientation for virtual implant placement. The inferior alveolar nerve could be marked to respect a minimum distance between the nerve and the planned implant. Three implant planning systems provided a library to display more than 50 implant systems (CDX, SIM, IST), one system provided 33 implant systems (SMP) and one implant system provided 4 implant systems (NC).
CONCLUSION
Depending on the used software system, there are limited options for a virtual set-up, virtual articulators and the display of a virtual prosthetic set-up. The implant systems used by the clinician is important for the decision which software system to choose, as there is a discrepancy between available implant systems and the number of supported systems in each software.
Topics: Computer-Aided Design; Dental Implantation, Endosseous; Dental Implants; Humans; Imaging, Three-Dimensional; Patient Care Planning; Software; Surgery, Computer-Assisted
PubMed: 35094677
DOI: 10.1186/s12903-022-02057-w -
Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic... Jul 2014Virtual reality is a computer based technology linked with the future of dentistry and dental practice. The virtual articulator is one such application in prosthetic and... (Review)
Review
Virtual reality is a computer based technology linked with the future of dentistry and dental practice. The virtual articulator is one such application in prosthetic and restorative dentistry based on virtual reality that will significantly reduce the limitations of the mechanical articulator, and by simulation of real patient data, allow analyses with regard to static and dynamic occlusion as well as to jaw relation. It is the purpose of this article to present the concepts and strategies for a future replacement of the mechanical articulator by a virtual one. Also, a brief note on virtual reality haptic system has been highlighted along with newly developed touch enabled virtual articulator.
PubMed: 25177664
DOI: 10.7860/JCDR/2014/8929.4648 -
Cureus Jan 2024The virtual articulator (VA) is a technology that simulates the jaw relation in a computer-generated setting. Augmented and virtual reality have been utilized as digital... (Review)
Review
The virtual articulator (VA) is a technology that simulates the jaw relation in a computer-generated setting. Augmented and virtual reality have been utilized as digital technology, which aids in many areas of dentistry and dental education. Today, a practicing dentist must keep up with the newer technologies, but with technology evolving so quickly it becomes challenging. In dentistry, the possibilities for digitization and technological advancements are limitless. Virtual articulators (VAs) allow a complete occlusion analysis using dental models that replicate all mandibular motions in static and dynamic scenarios. VA when executed in addition to other software enhances treatment planning and patient education, allowing quicker and more precise individualized diagnoses. The main objective of this study was to describe and evaluate the study outcomes in the available research on VAs, assess their needs, and evaluate their advantages and limitations in various aspects. A PubMed Central search was made of dental journals, with the identification of 135 articles out of which 30 were finally selected. The investigations conducted to evaluate the VA's dependability provide good visualization of the quantity and location of the dynamic interactions. A precise instrument for fully analyzing occlusion in a real patient is the virtual articulator.
PubMed: 38371021
DOI: 10.7759/cureus.52554 -
Medicina Oral, Patologia Oral Y Cirugia... Jan 2012The future of dental practice is closely linked to the utilization of computer-based technology, specifically virtual reality, which allows the dental surgeon to... (Review)
Review
The future of dental practice is closely linked to the utilization of computer-based technology, specifically virtual reality, which allows the dental surgeon to simulate true life situations in patients. The virtual articulator has been designed for the exhaustive analysis of static and dynamic occlusion, with the purpose of substituting mechanical articulators and avoiding their errors. These tools will help both odontologists and dental prosthetists to provide the best individualized treatment for each patient. The present review analyzes the studies published in the literature on the design, functioning and applications of virtual articulators. A Medline-PubMed search was made of dental journals, with the identification of 137 articles, of which 16 were finally selected. The virtual articulator can simulate the specific masticatory movement of the patient. During mandibular animation, the program calculates the sites where the opposing teeth come into contact. The studies made to assess the reliability of the virtual articulator show good correspondence in visualization of the number and position of the dynamic contacts. The virtual articulator is a precise tool for the full analysis of occlusion in a real patient.
Topics: Dental Articulators; Dental Occlusion; Humans
PubMed: 22157663
DOI: 10.4317/medoral.17147 -
Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) Oct 2023Dental articulation holds crucial and fundamental importance in the design of dental restorations and analysis of prosthetic or orthodontic occlusions. However, common...
Dental articulation holds crucial and fundamental importance in the design of dental restorations and analysis of prosthetic or orthodontic occlusions. However, common traditional and digital articulators are difficult and cumbersome in use to effectively translate the dental cast model to the articulator workspace when using traditional facebows. In this study, we have developed a personalized virtual dental articulator that directly utilizes computed tomography (CT) data to mathematically model the complex jaw movement, providing a more efficient and accurate way of analyzing and designing dental restorations. By utilizing CT data, Frankfurt's horizontal plane was established for the mathematical modeling of virtual articulation, eliminating tedious facebow transfers. After capturing the patients' CT images and tracking their jaw movements prior to dental treatment, the jaw-tracking information was incorporated into the articulation mathematical model. The validation and analysis of the personalized articulation approach were conducted by comparing the jaw movement between simulation data (virtual articulator) and real measurement data. As a result, the proposed virtual articulator achieves two important functions. Firstly, it replaces the traditional facebow transfer process by transferring the digital dental model to the virtual articulator through the anatomical relationship derived from the cranial CT data. Secondly, the jaw movement trajectory provided by optical tracking was incorporated into the mathematical articulation model to create a personalized virtual articulation with a small Fréchet distance of 1.7 mm. This virtual articulator provides a valuable tool that enables dentists to obtain diagnostic information about the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and configure personalized settings of occlusal analysis for patients.
PubMed: 38002372
DOI: 10.3390/bioengineering10111248 -
Contemporary Clinical Dentistry 2018This study was done to determine the level and type of microbial contamination present on the surface of various dental laboratory equipment and laboratory attire and to...
CONTEXT
This study was done to determine the level and type of microbial contamination present on the surface of various dental laboratory equipment and laboratory attire and to determine the antibiotic susceptibility pattern of these isolated pathogens.
SUBJECTS AND METHODS
The samples were divided into following groups: six groups of dental laboratory equipment (articulators, facebow, fox plane, polishing buff, micromotor handpiece, and surveyors) and dental attire of laboratory technicians and students. A total of 33 swabs were collected from each dental laboratory equipment, namely, articulators, facebow, fox plane, polishing buff, micromotor handpiece, and surveyors. The dental laboratory attire of students and dental technicians were analyzed separately. The swabs were collected from the laboratory attire at the end of the week, and they were washed once a week and at the beginning of the week. The groups are Group 1 - dental laboratory attire (students), Group 2 - dental laboratory attire (technicians), Group 3 - polishing buff, Group 4 - facebow, Group 5 - surveyor, Group 6 - fox plane, Group 7 - articulator, and Group 8 - micromotor handpiece. The moistened swabs were inoculated into the broth and subcultured on to the MacConkey Agar plates, and then incubated aerobically at 37°C for 24 h. The organisms were identified based on colony morphology, Gram staining, and standard biochemical tests. The antibiotic susceptibility patterns of the isolated organisms were done according to the CLSI guidelines. The collected data were statistically analyzed.
STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED
The data collected were entered into a Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet and analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics, Version 22 (Armonk, NY, IBM Corp.). The frequency and mean standard deviation of the samples were analyzed using Fisher's exact value test. Percentage of resistance among the isolates to different antimicrobials was also determined.
RESULTS
The microorganisms isolated were , coagulase-negative , nonfermenting Gram-negative bacteria, and species. The mean microbial levels in dental laboratory attire were more (5 log colony-forming units [CFU]) compared with dental equipment (3 log CFU-4 log CFU). Furthermore, most of the isolated organisms showed increased antimicrobial resistance.
CONCLUSION
Majority of the isolated organisms were not a part of the normal oral microflora and are capable of causing various diseases. The increased resistance to the antimicrobials showed by the isolated organisms proves that there are increased chances of multiresistant organisms to occur in the future.
PubMed: 31772472
DOI: 10.4103/ccd.ccd_569_18 -
Journal of Indian Prosthodontic Society Sep 2013Digitization has become part and parcel of the contemporary prosthodontics with the probability of most of the procedures being based on the digital techniques in near... (Review)
Review
Digitization has become part and parcel of the contemporary prosthodontics with the probability of most of the procedures being based on the digital techniques in near future. Let us think of X-rays or photographs, making impressions, recording jaw movements or fabricating prosthesis, educating and training new dentists or patient motivation for practice build up, all has become digital. CAD-CAM has revolutionized not just the ceramic technology but has also been used for the CAD-CAM implant surgeries, maxillofacial prosthesis and diagnostic splints. Today a practicing dentist needs to be abreast with the latest but with the technology changing so fast, this poses a great challenge. There is endless scope of digitisation and technology in prosthodontics- let it be in the clinical and lab procedures like use of CAD-CAM technology, stereolithography, rapid prototyping, use of virtual articulators and digital face bows, digital radiographs, or in the field of training, education and research by the use of virtual patient programs, dental softwares, optoelectronic recording of jaw motion, digital instron machine, retention testing device, audiovisual aids,… the list will remain endless. The article reviews those various aspects of prosthodontics where digitization has modified the conventional procedures. For discussion they have been considered under the educational aspect, diagnostics, treatment procedures, prosthesis fabrication and lastly the research and futuristic development. The day is not far when remote sensing robotic devices would be performing the restorations under the command and surveillance of the master-the dentist without his immediate presence.
PubMed: 24431730
DOI: 10.1007/s13191-012-0181-2 -
Journal of International Society of... 2021To meet the needs of society, it is obligatory to provide standardized skill training to undergraduate students in dental colleges. Surveys related to teaching...
OBJECTIVES
To meet the needs of society, it is obligatory to provide standardized skill training to undergraduate students in dental colleges. Surveys related to teaching curriculum are valuable means to evaluate education across the country. The aim of this study was to find the trends in the undergraduate teaching curriculum, by determining the differences in the teaching methods and principles of fabrication of removable partial dentures in dental colleges in Saudi Arabia and to compare these with the curriculum of North American dental schools and Turkish dental schools.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
An online survey was conducted in 23 dental colleges of Saudi Arabia. Descriptive data analysis was performed to synopsize the information.
RESULTS
Eighteen out of 23 (78.23%) dental colleges of Saudi Arabia answered the questionnaire; 88.9% of the colleges follow the practice of using custom trays for making final impressions; and 44.4% of the colleges use only polyvinyl siloxane for making final impressions. Semiadjustable articulators were commonly used for mounting study casts (61.1%) and master casts (66.6%). An in-house production laboratory is present in 72.2% of the colleges. Cobalt-chromium alloy is used in 94.4% of the colleges for the framework. A set protocol for postinsertion adjustment visits is followed in 94.4% of the colleges.
CONCLUSIONS
Dental colleges of Saudi Arabia have similar standards of removable partial denture education at the undergraduate level, with variations in a few aspects. Removable partial denture teaching programs of Saudi Arabian dental colleges are comparable to similar programs in dental schools of the United States and Turkey.
PubMed: 34036075
DOI: 10.4103/jispcd.JISPCD_374_20 -
Journal of Prosthodontics : Official... Jan 2022To investigate the trueness and precision of virtual facebow records using a smartphone as a three-dimensional (3D) face scanner.
PURPOSE
To investigate the trueness and precision of virtual facebow records using a smartphone as a three-dimensional (3D) face scanner.
MATERIAL AND METHODS
Twenty repeated virtual facebow records were performed on two subjects using a smartphone as a 3D face scanner. For each subject, a virtual facebow was attached to his/her maxillary arch, and face scans were performed using a smartphone with a 3D scan application. The subject's maxillary arch intraoral scan was aligned to the face scan by the virtual facebow fork. This procedure was repeated 10 times for each subject. To investigate if the maxillary scan is located at the right position to the face, these virtual facebow records were superimposed to a cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) head scan from the same subject by matching the face scan to the 3D face reconstruction from CBCT images. The location of maxillary arch in virtual facebow records was compared with its position in CBCT. The "trueness" of the proposed procedure is defined as the deviation between maxilla arch position in virtual facebow records and the CBCT images. The "precision" is defined as the deviation between each virtual facebow record. The linear deviation at left central incisor (#9), left first molar (#14), and right first molar (#3), as well as angular deviation of occlusal plane were analyzed with descriptive statistics. Differences between two objects were also explored with Mann Whitney U test.
RESULTS
The 20 virtual facebow records using the smartphone 3D scanner deviated from the CBCT measurements (trueness) by 1.14 ± 0.40 mm at #9, 1.20 ± 0.50 mm at #14, 1.12 ± 0.51 mm at the #3, and 1.48 ± 0.56° in the occlusal plane. The VFTs deviated from each other by 1.06 ± 0.50 mm at #9, 1.09 ± 0.49 mm at #14, 1.11 ± 0.58 mm at #3, and 0.81 ± 0.58° in the occlusal plane. When all sites combined, the trueness was 1.14 ± 0.40 mm, and the precision was 1.08 ± 0.52 mm. Out of eight measurements, three measurements were significantly different between subjects. Nevertheless, the mean difference was small.
CONCLUSIONS
Virtual facebow records made using smartphone-based face scan can capture the maxilla position with high trueness and precision. The deviation can be anticipated as around 1 mm in linear distance and 1° in angulation.
Topics: Computer-Aided Design; Cone-Beam Computed Tomography; Dental Occlusion; Female; Humans; Imaging, Three-Dimensional; Male; Maxilla; Models, Dental; Smartphone
PubMed: 33876857
DOI: 10.1111/jopr.13366