A CAD-based methodology for dental implant surgery

In the field of oral rehabilitation, innovative methodologies based on the combined use of 3D imaging technologies and computer-guided approaches, have been developed with the aim at defining reliable tools for the virtual preoperative assessment of implant placement. The accurate and reliable transfer of the virtual planning into the surgical field represents the main challenge for modern implantology. This paper aims at defining and verifying the clinical applicability of an innovative CAD/CAM framework for the accurate planning of dental implant surgeries based on the integration of Computed Tomography (CT) and surface optical scanning. The higher accuracy and resolution of optical scanning allows a more accurate reconstruction of dentition structures and mouth soft tissues, thus guaranteeing a better fitting of the designed prosthetic structures with respect to the patient oral cavity.