GS3: Use of Digital Design in Treatment Planning and Tissue Reconstruction

Speakers

2.0 CE

As dentists, we face challenges to reconstruct hard and soft tissues for our patients in limited numbers of steps with maximal predictability. Innovations in 3-D imaging of hard and soft tissues provides new opportunities for innovative design of biomaterials for tissue reconstructive procedures. While regenerative medicine has received significant attention in periodontology with a strong focus on scaffolds and biologics, other technologies exist to improve the ability of clinicians to regenerate tissue. Hence, this presentation will: 1. detail the use of many affordable methods to improve hard and soft tissue reconstruction; 2. highlight emerging therapies in the areas of materials science, 3-D printing, growth factor biology, and cell therapies coupled with digital design; and 3. describe additional initiatives in tissue engineering that have succeeded in regenerating multiple tissue types including bone, cartilage, muscle, keratinized tissue, and teeth employing matrix, cell source, bioreactor, antibiotic, and cytokine technology.

Educational Objectives:

• Show clinical and histologic results with bone replacement grafts, barriers, and growth enhancing materials, bioactive whenever possible, for intraoral hard and/or soft tissue regeneration.
• Propose methods where tissue engineering may be used to develop novel strategies for periodontology.
• Explain the principles of regenerative medicine including biologic scaffolds, cell therapies, growth factors, and the future of 3-D printing.
• Discuss the advantages and limitations of tissue engineering using digital dentistry in today’s clinical practice, and what may be available in the near future for both implant dentistry and periodontics.