METHODS article
Front. Oral Health
Sec. Oral Health Promotion
This article is part of the Research TopicCutting-Edge Technologies in Digital DentistryView all 8 articles
Chairside digital workflow to obtain an optimized 3D model of a partially edentulous mandible
Provisionally accepted
- Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
Intraoral scanners generate accurate optical impressions for dentate areas, but wide edentulous spans remain challenging due to limited stable landmarks and mobile mucosa. This article describes a single-visit, chairside workflow that combines an intraoral scan with a digitized irreversible hydrocolloid impression to obtain an optimized three-dimensional model of a partially edentulous mandible suitable for computer aided design-based removable partial denture fabrication other prosthetically driven procedures. The workflow includes intraoral scanning, conventional alginate impression taking followed by chairside digitization with the same scanner, mesh trimming and inversion to generate a positive mucosal surface, and integration of both datasets through sectioned areas and targeted best-fit alignment. The resulting composite model preserves the dentate part from the impression scan. The composite model accuracy should be validated intraorally a three-dimensional printed try-in. This fully chairside protocol provides a practical approach to producing a working mandibular model for digital prosthodontic applications for patients who require a minimal clinical appointment.
Keywords: 3D model, digital workflow, Intraoral scanner, Optical impression, Removable partial denture
Received: 24 Sep 2025; Accepted: 09 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Petre, Drafta and Macris. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Sergiu Drafta
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.