Impact of the number of registration points for replacement of three-dimensional computed tomography images in dental areas using three-dimensional light-scanned images of dental models

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the accuracy and reliability of registration methods for replacing dental areas of three-dimensional (3D) computed tomography (CT) images with 3D light-scanned dental images using tooth cusp tips and the occlusal surface. The number of registration points was investigated for its impact on the tooth cusp tip-based method. Computed tomography image data on ten skull models and light-scanned data from dental cast models of the skulls were registered with imaging registration software. The marker-free registration using tooth cusp tips involved five protocols identifying 3–14 points as registration references. The control registration protocol consisted of a surface-matching method that used the occlusal surface. Errors were measured between the reference data and the registered images at the mesial, distal, buccal, and lingual tooth surfaces. For image registration using dental cusp tips, the mean error ranged from 0.164 mm for seven points to 0.198 mm for 14 points. The error did not decrease with an increase in the number of registration points from three to 14. The use of dental cusp tips resulted in no significant error with respect to the number of registration points. Image registration using the occlusal surface yielded a mean error of 0.116 mm. Significant differences between the errors were observed in comparisons of the dental cusp tip and occlusal surface registrations. When positioning scanned dental images onto CT images, surface-based image registration using the occlusal surface gives less error than reference point-based image registration with dental cusp tips. We found no significant difference in the error with an increase in the number of registration points from three to 14.