The purpose of the study was to investigate the influence of 3D printing parameters on fit and internal gap of 3D printed resin dental prosthesis. The dental model was simulated and fabricated for three-unit prostheses with two implants. One hundred prostheses were 3D printed with two-layer thicknesses for five build orientations using a resin (NextDent C&B; 3D systems, Soesterberg, The Netherlands) and ten prostheses were manufactured with a milling resin as control. The prostheses were seated and scanned with micro-CT (computerized tomography). Internal gap volume (IGV) was calculated from 3D reconstructed micro-CT data. IGV, marginal fit, and lengths of internal gaps were measured, and the values were analyzed statistically. For the 3D printed prostheses, IGV was smaller at 45°, 60°, and 90° compared to other build orientations. The marginal fit evaluated by absolute marginal discrepancy was smaller than other build orientations at 45° and 60°. IGV was smaller at 50 µm layer thickness than at 100 µm layer thickness, but the marginal fit was smaller at 100 µm layer thickness than at 50 µm layer thickness. The 3D printed prosthesis had smaller internal gap than the milled prosthesis. The marginal fit of the 3D printed resin prosthesis was clinically acceptable, and build orientation of 45° and 60° would be recommended when considering fit and internal gap.

The clinical application of 3D-printed provisional restorations is increasing due to expansion of intraoral scanners, easy dental computer-aided design (CAD) software, and improved 3D printing speed. This study compared flexural strength of 3D-printed three-unit fixed dental prostheses with that of conventionally fabricated and milled restorations. A metal jig of two abutments and pontic space and an indenter for flexural strength measurement were fabricated. A three-unit fixed dental prosthesis was designed and manufactured using three additive manufacturing technologies, with subtractive manufacturing and a conventional method as controls. Digital light processing (DLP) group specimens were prepared from a polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA)-based resin and printed with a DLP printer. Stereolithography (SLA) group specimens were prepared from PMMA-based resin and printed with an SLA printer, and fused deposition modeling (FDM) group specimens were from a polylactic acid-based resin and printed with an FDM printer. Flexural strength was investigated using a universal testing machine, and the results were statistically analyzed. DLP and SLA groups had significantly higher flexural strength than the conventional group (p < 0.001). No significant difference was observed in flexural strength between DLP and SLA groups. The FDM group showed only dents but no fracture. The results of this study suggest that provisional restorations fabricated by DLP and SLA technologies provide adequate flexural strength for dental use.

Previous studies on accuracy of three-dimensional (3D) printed model focused on full arch measurements at few points. The aim of this study was to examine the dimensional accuracy of 3D-printed models which were teeth-prepped for three-unit fixed prostheses, especially at margin and proximal contact areas. The prepped dental model was scanned with a desktop scanner. Using this reference file, test models were fabricated by digital light processing (DLP), Multi-Jet printing (MJP), and stereo-lithography apparatus (SLA) techniques. We calculated the accuracy (trueness and precision) of 3D-printed models on 3D planes, and deviations of each measured points at buccolingual and mesiodistal planes. We also analyzed the surface roughness of resin printed models. For overall 3D analysis, MJP showed significantly higher accuracy (trueness) than DLP and SLA techniques; however, there was not any statistically significant difference on precision. For deviations on margins of molar tooth and distance to proximal contact, MJP showed significantly accurate results; however, for a premolar tooth, there was no significant difference between the groups. 3D color maps of printed models showed contraction buccolingually, and surface roughness of the models fabricated by MJP technique was observed as the lowest. The accuracy of the 3D-printed resin models by DLP, MJP, and SLA techniques showed a clinically acceptable range to use as a working model for manufacturing dental prostheses