In-vitro assessment of the accuracy and reliability of mandibular dental model superimposition based on voxel-based cone-beam computed tomography registration

Objective: This study was performed to evaluate the accuracy and reliability of a newly designed method to achieve mandibular dental model superimposition, using voxel-based cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) registration. Methods: Fourteen dry cadaveric mandibles and six teeth extracted from patients with severe periodontitis were used to establish 14 orthodontic tooth-movement models. The protocol consisted of two steps: in the first step, voxel-based CBCT mandible superimposition was performed; the reference comprised the external portion of the symphysis, extending to the first molar. The laser-scanned dental model image was then integrated with the CBCT image to achieve mandibular dental model superimposition. The entire process required approximately 10 minutes. Six landmarks were assigned to the teeth to measure tooth displacement, using tooth displacement on the superimposed laser-scanned mandibles as the reference standard. Accuracy was evaluated by comparing differences in tooth displacement based on the method and the reference standard. Two observers performed superimposition to evaluate reliability. Results: For three-dimensional tooth displacements, the differences between the method and the reference standard were not significant in the molar, premolar, or incisor groups (p > 0.05). The intraclass correlation coefficients for the inter-and intra-observer reliabilities of all measurements were > 0.92. Conclusions: Our method of mandibular dental model superimposition based on voxel registration is accurate, reliable, and can be performed within a reasonable period of time in vitro, demonstrating a potential for use in orthodontic patients.