Fabrication of a single-visit additively manufactured flexible removable partial denture as an immediate temporary prosthetic solution.

Abstract

A technique for designing and manufacturing a single-visit temporary removable partial denture is described. This immediate provisional prosthesis is made of a newly introduced esthetic 3D-printed thermoplastic material. The arch to be restored, the antagonist, and the maxillomandibular relationship were optically scanned using an intraoral scanner (Medit i700, Medit). The removable partial denture was designed using the Exocad software program (Dental CAD). The denture base was 3D printed in flexible gingiva-colored resin, while the teeth were 3D printed in permanent tooth-colored resin. This digitally fabricated prosthesis will provide partially edentulous patients with a time- and cost-effective esthetic temporization with adequate retention and high patient acceptance. This technique demonstrates free-form designing of the flexible clasps and their geometry. It also highlights the need to develop specialized dental software programs to include ready-made flexible clasps to cope with the continuous development of flexible 3D-printed resinous materials.