RESEARCH ARTICLE


Evaluation of Dimensional Changes of 3D Printed Models After Sterilization: A Pilot Study



Eman Shaheen*, Abdulhadi Alhelwani, Elke Van De Casteele, Constantinus Politis, Reinhilde Jacobs
OMFS IMPATH research group, Department of Imaging & Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, KU Leuven & Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium


Article Metrics

CrossRef Citations:
41
Total Statistics:

Full-Text HTML Views: 471
Abstract HTML Views: 118
PDF Downloads: 82
ePub Downloads: 37
Total Views/Downloads: 708
Unique Statistics:

Full-Text HTML Views: 313
Abstract HTML Views: 91
PDF Downloads: 72
ePub Downloads: 33
Total Views/Downloads: 509



Creative Commons License
© 2018 Shaheen et al.

open-access license: This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0), a copy of which is available at: (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode). This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

* Address correspondence to this author at The OMFS IMPATH research group, Department of Imaging & Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, KU Leuven & Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium, Tel: +32 16 341854; E-mail: eman.shaheen@uzleuven.be


Abstract

Objectives:

To assess the effect of two of the most commonly used sterilization techniques on 3D printed clinical objects.

Materials & Methods:

The two sterilization methods used in our hospital and investigated in this paper are: Steam heat and Gas plasma. Three objects were printed and tested in this study: a tooth replica, an orthognathic final splint, a surgical cutting guide for the purpose of mandible reconstruction. For each of the 3 objects, 4 copies were made: one original STL object, one copy of the object pre-sterilization, one copy of post-steam heat sterilization, and one copy of post-gas plasma sterilization. Each printed object was scanned using a high resolution CBCT protocol and the compared (morphologically and volumetrically).

Results:

At the level of volumetric changes, no difference was found between pre and post-sterilization for both methods evaluated. As for the morphological changes, only differences were noticed with the orthognathic splint object indicating deformation of the printed splints after sterilization. Larger differences were observed with heat sterilization, making it less reliable.

Conclusion:

Sterilization of dental objects to be used in a clinical setting may lead to deformation of the printed model, especially for heat sterilization. Further investigations are needed to confirm these findings.

Keywords: 3D printing, PolyJet printing, Sterilization, CAD/CAM, Splint, Tooth auto-transplantation, Surgical guide.