Fit accuracy of resin crown on a dental model fabricated using fused deposition modeling 3D printing and a polylactic acid filament

Purpose We considered the possibility of reducing industrial waste by fabricating and reusing dental models prepared using a fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printer and polylactic acid (PLA) filaments. The purpose of this study was to verify the accuracy of models fabricated using FDM and PLA.Methods The same provisional crown was used to check the marginal fit on PLA models prepared using an intraoral scanner (IOS) and FDM, plaster models made with silicone impression material and plaster, and resin models prepared using an IOS and stereolithography apparatus (SLA) 3D printer. The marginal fit was measured using micro-computed tomography at four points on the tooth: the buccal center (B), palatal center (P), mesial center (M), and distal center (D) points.Results At point B, the marginal gaps were 118 ± 21.7, 62 ± 16.4, and 50 ± 26.5 μm for the PLA, resin, and plaster models, respectively, with a significant difference between the PLA model and the other two. However, the marginal gap at all other measurement points was not significantly different between the models (P > 0.05).Conclusions We compared the accuracy of the models fabricated using the FDM, SLA, and conventional methods. The combination of FDM and PLA filaments showed no significant differences from the other models, except at point B, indicating its usefulness. Therefore, FDM and PLA may become necessary materials for dental treatment in the future.