Creating a digitized database of maxillofacial prostheses (obturators): A pilot study.

Abstract

PURPOSEThis study aimed to create a digitized database of fabricated obturators to be kept for patients' potential emergency needs.MATERIALS AND METHODSA chairside intraoral scanner was used to scan the surfaces of an acrylic resin obturator. The scanned data was recorded and saved as a single standard tessellation language file using a three-dimensional modeling software. A simulated obturator model was manufactured using fused deposition modeling technique in a three-dimensional printer.RESULTSThe entire obturator was successfully scanned regardless of its structural complexity, modeled as three-dimensional data, and stored in the digital system of our clinic at a relatively small size (19.6 MB). A simulated obturator model was then accurately manufactured from these data.CONCLUSIONThis study provides a proof-of-concept for the use of digital technology to create a digitized database of obturators for edentulous maxillectomy patients.