Introduction of a new teaching concept for dentin post preparation with 3D printed teeth

Abstract

Introduction: The preparation for dentin posts is difficult and hard to learn. There are currently no reproducible simulation models to train this clinical procedure. The purpose of this study was the design, feasibility and evaluation of a three-dimensional (3D) printed tooth model for the pre-clinical teaching of students.

Materials and methods: A printable tooth was designed and printed by a stereolithographic printer. A total of 48 fourth-year dental students in the first clinical course in prosthodontics were trained in a voluntary hands-on course on 4 similar printed teeth. The students used standard model teeth and real-teeth models during their education. They had experience in caries removement and root canal treatment on real patients. Root perforations were counted for every attempt. The different benefits of the 3D printed tooth were evaluated by a questionnaire using German school grades from 1 (best) to 6 (worst).

Results: The overall rating of the printed tooth was Ø1.9 ± 0.3. The item "suitable exercise option" was rated Ø2.0 ± 0.8, and the teeth were "easy to use" Ø1.9 ± 0.9. The item "realistic approach to dentin post preparation" was rated Ø2.1 ± 0.8, and the teeth showed the "shortcomings at a root perforation" Ø1.5 ± 0.6. The students reported to have much more motivation and enthusiasm to improve their skills with the printed teeth Ø2.1 ± 0.9. They had a strong desire to include these teeth in their pre-clinical education before the first patient treatment Ø1.6 ± 0.8. The success rate of the dentin post preparation was significantly better for the second 25% (P = .047) and fourth 48% (P = .04) attempt.

Conclusions: The feasibility of this teaching concept was confirmed. The students had the possibility to learn a correct dentin post preparation on a printed tooth model. The learning effect with this tooth model was rated as good to very good by the questionnaire.

Keywords: 3D printing; CAD; CAM; additive manufacturing; clinical practice; dental education; dentin post; printed tooth; rapid prototyping; stereolithography; student training.