REVOLUTIONARY PATIENT ANALYSIS

3D VIRTUAL REPRODUCTION OF PATIENT ’ S PHYSIOGNOMY AND ORAL SITUATION

Recording patient-specifi c information with the PlaneSystem ® and the Face Hunter 3D facial scanner improves diagnostic planning, reduces chair time and increases patient satisfaction. Individual position of the maxilla, occlusal plane and 3D face scans are accurately transferred 1:1 into the Zirkonzahn software and combined without loss in information. The 3D virtual patient provides the restorative team in the clinic and lab with the ideal planning tools for high quality functional and aesthetic dental splints and rehabilitations.

The same applied to the inclination of the occlusal plane: to the left and the right of the vertically positioned midline any possible natural asymmetries were reflected. The inclination angle is determined based on the ala-tragus line (i.e. Camper plane), whose orientation may be assumed to be parallel to the natural occlusal plane (Figure 6). This line extends from the lower border of the nasal wing (ala nasi) to the cartilage before the opening of the ear (tragus). As the bilateral values for this inclination may vary due to natural asymmetries, its angle is measured on both sides of the face.

In the next step, the maxillary cast is inserted into the silicone index, followed by placing the index onto the (horizontally oriented) PlanePositioner, considering the midline and the horizontal reference plane and mounting it inside the PS1 articulator, effectively “copying” the situation recorded directly from the patient (Figure 7).

After fixing the cast, the silicone index can be removed and the inclination of the occlusal plane can be replicated by adjusting the PlanePositioner inside the articulator to the angle values previously identified with the PlaneFinder. From this point onwards, in developing the patient case, it is possible to recheck the occlusal plane whenever it’s needed on the PS1 laboratory’s articulator.

Patient diagnostics - The Face Hunter

3D scanner for photo-realistic digitisation of patient’s face

Another key tool within the PlaneSystem workflow for the manufacture of patient-oriented dental prostheses is the Face Hunter 3D facial scanner. With this easy-to-handle instrument, the patient’s physiognomy is digitised and transferred in the virtual articulator in relation to the axis: just a single click and the patient’s face is scanned in a few seconds only. To obtain a complete reproduction of the facial data, the patient can be scanned at different angles and with different facial expressions. The scans can be then imported into the design software, where the dental technician can carry out the tooth set-up based on the patient’s natural teeth.

3D facial scan data can bring many advantages not only to dental technicians but also to dentists and patients. Thanks to the use of the patient’s real physiognomy, the dental technician can obtain a result as precise as possible, providing dentists and patients with a near-photorealistic preview of the final restoration during the consultation phase.