Simulation of postoperative occlusion and direction in autotransplantation of teeth: application of computer-aided design and digital surgical templates

Abstract

Autotransplantation of teeth requires optimisation of both occlusion and direction to ensure minimal injury to the dental crown and the alveolar bone. We describe a method that could simulate postoperative occlusion and direction of the donor tooth by using CAD and digital surgical templates, and evaluate the postoperative effect in five patients who had teeth autotransplanted. Computed tomographic data were imported into ProPlan CMF 3.0 software, the donor tooth was simulated to replace the recipient site according to the position of the occlusion and alveolar bone, and a digital template was designed to guide preparation of the socket. A computer-aided, rapid prototyped, tooth was used to match the socket and, finally, an occlusal template was designed to ensure that the donor tooth was in the simulated position. We compared the position of the tooth in the simulation with its postoperative position using ProPlan CMF 3.0 software. In this way it was possible to simulate and guide the donor tooth accurately to the recipient site. At six-month follow up all teeth had survived successfully. Given the efficiency and precision of placement and the success, we conclude that CAD can successfully help to simulate occlusion and direction in autotransplantation of teeth while simplifying the procedure.

Keywords: computer-aided design; digital surgical template; tooth autotransplantation.