Abstract
Objective
To study an accurate, efficient, and fast method for creating a three-dimensional finite element model using a combination of oral soft and hard tissue images obtained from various field of view CBCT scans and intra-oral 3D scan.
METHODS
An adult female volunteer was selected, and the mandible was scanned using two different field of view CBCT scans, the resulting images were imported into Mimics, Blue Sky Bio, and 3-Matic software using DICOM format, then it was used to create models of the teeth, periodontal ligament, and mandible bone, respectively. The oral soft tissues and dental arch were scanned using an intra-oral digital scanner. The obtained scans were processed using Geomagic and 3-Matic software to create a gingival model. The created model was meshed, and a three-dimensional finite element model consisting of a tetrahedral mesh was generated.
RESULTS
A comprehensive finite element model consisting of the mandible, dental arch, periodontal ligament, and gingiva was established. The model comprised a total of 222,873 nodes, with the following distribution: 892,871, 40,358, 405,043 and 234,224 for the mandible bone, periodontal ligament, teeth and gingiva, respectively.
CONCLUSION
The modeling method based on different field of view CBCT scans and Intra-oral scan can establish a comprehensive finite element model of the mandible bone and gingiva, which is more accurate, faster, and has a wide range of applicability.