Digital Workflow for Establishing the Posterior Palatal Seal on a Digital Complete Denture

J Prosthodont. 2021 Dec;30(9):817-821. doi: 10.1111/jopr.13401. Epub 2021 Jun 24.

Abstract

The posterior palatal seal (PPS) plays important roles in improving denture retention, preventing food and debris from entering under the denture base, reducing the gag reflex, providing more strength across the denture, and making the distal border less noticeable to the tongue. Digital dentures have become popular, owing to the use of computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing and rapid prototyping technologies. However, limited research has been conducted on a digital workflow to establish the PPS. This article presents a technique to establish the PPS by using digital technologies for providing the advantages of the PPS to patients wearing digital dentures.

Keywords: CAD; Digital denture; Nondental open-source software; digital sculpting; intraoral scanner.

MeSH terms

  • Computer-Aided Design*
  • Denture, Complete*
  • Humans
  • Palate
  • Workflow