Application of digital positioning guide plate in extraction of impacted supernumerary teeth

Abstract

To explore the application of digital positioning guide plate in extraction of impacted supernumerary teeth and evaluate its clinical efficacy. From March to August, 2019, 30 patients with labial impacted supernumerary teeth treated in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Stomatological Hospital, Southern Medical University were enrolled in this study. Fifteen of the patients were treated with digital positioning guide plate to remove the impacted supernumerary teeth (test group). According to the CBCT data and the dentition model of the patients, the positioning guide plate was positioned by avoiding the important anatomical structure with the tooth-bone surface as the support to design the soft tissue incision line and bone tissue exposure range. The other 15 patients who were treated without the use of the guide plate for operation served as the control group. The design time, tooth searching time, operation time and complications were compared between the two groups. The positioning guide plate was well attached during the operation and allowed quick location of the supernumerary teeth while helping to expose the supernumerary teeth and avoid the damage of the adjacent important anatomical structures. The pre-operative design time was 50 ± 5 min in the test group and 0 min in the control group. The average time of tooth finding in the test group was 5±2 min, as compared with 10±3 min in the control group (t=15.40, P < 0.01); the average time of operation was significantly shorter in the test group than in the control group (25±4 min vs 45±6 min; t=35.50, P < 0.01). No intraoperative complications occurred in the test group, and slight deviation occurred in one case in the control group. The application of digital positioning guide plate in extraction of embedded supernumerary teeth can significantly shorten the time of tooth finding, reduce the difficulty of operation, and improve the quality of operation.