Retrospective Comparison of Postinsertion Maintenances Between Conventional and 3D Printed Complete Dentures Fabricated in a Predoctoral Clinic

Purpose A retrospective study to analyze the clinical performance of 3D printed complete dentures in edentulous patients compared with conventional complete dentures regarding postinsertion visits and patient reported outcomes. Material and Methods Electronic charts were reviewed to analyze 420 (maxilla 270, mandible 150) heat-polymerized conventional complete dentures (CCD) inserted between July 1, 2015 and June 30, 2016 and 217 (maxilla 130, mandible 86) 3D printed complete dentures (PCD) inserted between July 1, 2017 and June 30, 2018. Number of remakes, number of postinsertion adjustments, type and number of repairs, and patient reported complications were compared between two types of complete dentures. The frequency of denture repair and patient reported complications were analyzed using chi-square of independence test. Results The frequency of pain and visible ulcer lesions in the maxilla was determined to be 46.67% with CCD and 36.15% in PCD (p = 0.047). There was no statistical significance in other items. The majority of esthetic concerns was dissatisfaction with the shape of dentures with CCD (4.67%) and they had statistically significant, less frequent, esthetic problems than PCD (11.63%) (p = 0.047). Conclusions Similar clinical performance was recorded between the two groups, but the overall pain and visible ulcer lesions were less in the printed complete dentures then the conventionally processed dentures. However, the esthetic aspect was better in conventionally processed complete dentures.