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An Overview of 3D Printable Materials for Dental and Craniofacial Applications

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3D Printing in Oral Health Science

Abstract

Additive manufacturing (AM), colloquially known as 3D printing, is a process of making objects by depositing materials in a layer-by-layer fashion. 3D printing finds its use in several applications, including aerospace, engineering, construction, and medicine. There are numerous 3D printing material options available, namely resins, polymers, and metals. These materials may be in the form of powder, liquid resins, and filaments. Recent material and process development has seen increasing use of 3D printing for biomedical applications, particularly in dental and craniofacial applications. Digital dentistry is enabled by using 3D printing techniques like selective laser sintering, stereolithography (SLA), and fused deposition modeling (FDM) to manufacture patient-specific instrumentation. Mass and individual customization, perfect fit, quick turnaround time, and accurate clinical outcomes are the benefits of using 3D printing for dentistry. Anatomical models, clear aligners, and gingiva masks are among the few applications which use 3D printing for indirect use. Other dental applications that directly utilize 3D printing for end use are maxillofacial implants, crowns, and bridges. With emerging research, the assortment of 3D printing materials is only going to grow in the future. High-strength polymers like polyether ether ketone (PEEK), biomaterials, ceramics, and novel metal alloys will soon augment digital dentistry.

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  1. Imaginarium India Pvt. Ltd., Mumbai, India

    Nikhil Belsure, Sagar Parekh & Nimesh Soni

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  1. Nikhil Belsure
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  2. Sagar Parekh
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  1. All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India

    Prabhat Kumar Chaudhari

  2. North Eastern Hill University, Shillong, India

    Dinesh Bhatia

  3. All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar, India

    Jitendra Sharan

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Belsure, N., Parekh, S., Soni, N. (2022). An Overview of 3D Printable Materials for Dental and Craniofacial Applications. In: Chaudhari, P.K., Bhatia, D., Sharan, J. (eds) 3D Printing in Oral Health Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-07369-4_4

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