Accuracy of computer-assisted template-guided autotransplantation of teeth with custom 3D designed/printed surgical tooling. A cadaveric study

PURPOSE The aim of the present cadaveric study was to assess the accuracy of computer-assisted template-guided autotransplantation of teeth with custom 3-dimensional (3D) designed/printed surgical tooling. MATERIALS AND METHODS Ten partially edentulous human mandibular cadavers were scanned using a cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) system and an intraoral scanning system. The 3D data of these cadavers were imported to specialized software and used to analyze the region of the recipient sites, and the donor teeth were selected. Subsequently, congruent to the donor teeth, custom surgical tooling and surgical-guided templates were designed and 3D printed. The guided osteotomies were performed and the donor teeth transplanted. To evaluate the planned donor teeth positions compared with the transplanted donor teeth positions, the mandibles were scanned again using the CBCT system, and software matching was applied to measure the accuracy of the procedure. RESULTS The mean angular deflection of the transplanted donor teeth with the planned donor teeth positions was 5.6 ± 5.4°. Comparing the 3D positions of the shoulders, a mean deviation of 3.15 ± 1.16 mm and a mean apical deviation of 2.61 ± 0.78 mm were found. CONCLUSIONS The described method of computer-assisted template-guided autotransplantation of teeth with custom 3D designed/printed surgical tooling could potentially provide a relatively accurate alternative for the currently available treatment approaches. Further research should focus on improving the accuracy of this technique and evaluating the clinical success and advantages of this method.