Adoption of 3D Printing in the Dental Industry

 

The versatile usage of 3D printing has given it a higher stature in today’s world. It not just increases work efficiency but also provides ample of variety and methodologies which caters to several industries.

The role of 3D printing in medical industry is indispensable. With each passing day the roots of 3D printing is growing deeper and deeper into the firm ground of medical science. 3D printing has ample of uses in making prosthetics, implants and medical tools. Today the dental industry is also accommodating several forms of 3D printing in the making of the dental implants and orthodontic appliances.

 

Forms of 3D printing in dental industry

 

Braces with LED lights:

These braces with LED lights are created by Researchers from the King Abdullah University of Science & Technology in Saudi Arabia, using methodologies of 3D printing. These braces are semi-translucent and along with these one mini non toxic lithium battery is put on the surface of each individual tooth , the energy produced by the light helps in the proper and faster movement of the tooth. The light cannot be seen through naked eyes. The entire process is certainly discrete and the usage of it amongst people is partially restricted.

 

3D printed dentures:

One can also create a complete set of dentures using 3D printing and the materials used in this process are biocompatible materials and 3D printed dentures- can also adjust with the patient’s  quite efficiently and this entire process Can only be performed after clinical tests.

 

3D printed dental implants:

In several dental implant surgeries, additive manufacturing has a very important role to play. It is certainly possible to produce a missing tooth by using 3D printing. Infact a identical tooth can be produced way more easily and economically by 3D printing. In China a 3D printed tooth was implanted in a surgery performed on an autonomous person and the entire surgery took only an hour or so and was a great success.

 

Crowns made by 3D printing:

The process of making tooth crowns using 3D printing is very common in dentistry. A tooth crown can be created by just scanning the tooth of the patient and then modeling it and placing it on the patients tooth. Additive manufacturing helps in producing the crowns with more ease and the entire process can be performed by the density himself.

Using 3D printing one can not only produce braces or crowns or dentures by also a plethora of other dental tools which helps the dental workers in performing operations and other dental activities.

 

 

How is 3D printing associated with dental applications?

As dental 3D scanners are available quite easily in the market, so it is quite easy to scan the dentition of a patient and scanning is the first step in dental applications. The use of a 3D converting software helps in the next step as the 2D model needs to be converted into a 3D model from a 2D model. A wide range of such software’s are available in the market nowadays.   These software’s help in getting better visualizations. These software’s also enable modifications for better adaptations of the models. Some of the very popular 3D printing software are –

DWOS model builder- it is a CAD software which is developed by dental wings and this software helps in creating 3D dental models with great ease.

3shape– this software is basically dedicated to dentistry and has different packages which serve different purposes.

 

 

 

Why 3D printing techniques should be used ?

Digital dentistry has achieved several heights and has crafted various ways in which dental tools or prosthetics can easily be formed by using 3D printing. Infact the raw materials used in this process shall be biocompatible materials like biocompatible resins offered by Carbon, Dental SG etc. These materials also ensure biodegradability.

 

 

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