Dental students’ perceptions on a simulated practice using patient‐based customised typodonts during the transition from preclinical to clinical education

Abstract

Purpose/Objectives Dental students experience difficulties during the transition from preclinical to clinical curriculum. In order to help the students to adapt to the clinical education programme, a simulated practice using patient‐based customised models was introduced in this study to prepare for their first clinical practice. Methods This study included 45 third‐year predoctoral students (D3 students) who were about to perform the preparation of a single crown abutment on their first patient. After practicing abutment preparation using simulated models and providing the actual treatment to their own patient, the students were surveyed to investigate their perceptions on the simulated practice using the 3D‐printed customised typodont model. The statistical analysis of the quantitative data and the thematic analysis of the qualitative data were conducted. Results Regarding this simulation, more than 80% of the students gave positive feedback on their practice of (a) operative positions and postures, (b) finger rest, (c) occlusal reduction, (d) axial reduction and (e) proximal reduction. Student responses on the open‐ended questions about how they perceived the usefulness of this simulation were categorised as “First clinical case,” “Patient‐based model” and “Realistic simulation environment.” In addition, a number of improvements of the simulation were also suggested by the students including the typodont and the manikin. Conclusions This study gives insights into the significance of simulated practice using patient‐based customised typodonts as a transitional education tool and its direction of development in the field of restorative treatments accompanied by irreversible tooth preparations.

Students’ and tutors’ perceptions of a deliberate simulated practice using patient‐specific virtual and three‐dimensional printed teeth models: A pilot study

“…Regarding the patient-specific 3D-printed teeth and VR experience, 93% (71% strongly agree and 22% agree) of the participating students thought it was interesting (Table 1); this is very similar to the 89% of students who thought the same in the study by Lee et al 19 when practicing with 3D-printed teeth. Further, 79% (46% strongly disagree and 33% disagree) of our students disagreed with the statement that their experience was not helpful in developing their practical skills (Table 1).…”

“…A similar study with 3D-printed teeth (not VR models) conducted on 45 third-year dental students in Korea found that more than 80% of participants gave positive feedback after practicing for a single crown abutment with 3D-printed customized typodont models before conducting the actual treatment on their patients. 19 Students' perception of their self-confidence in performing a posterior indirect tooth restoration increased from 52% (11% strongly agree and 41% agree) before the deliberate practice experience (Figure 1) to 82% (44% strongly agree and 38% agree) after performing their tooth preparation in the 3D and VR models (Table 1); this difference was statistically significant (p ≥ 0.0001). Self-confidence was also an emerging theme (Table 2), as it was a recurrent comment in the open-ended question answered by students after practicing in both model formats.…”

“…Based on previous studies 10,19,24 and our own experience, three short draft questionnaires were developed. The first one contained three Likert-style items and assessed dental students' perceptions about their preparedness to perform a tooth crown and/or an onlay before performing it on their patients.…”

“…8,10,14,17,18 However, because of the diversity of teeth shapes, positions, and patient conditions found in the clinic, these training methods may not necessarily reflect the students' actual performance in real clinical cases. 19,20 Thus, new developments in dental simulation training include the combination of patient-specific VR exercises and three-dimensional (3D) printed models. 10,15,19 The former involves drillable interactive 3D virtual models scanned from real patients displayed in VR dental simulators, while in the latter, a 3D model of the patient's teeth is printed for the students to practice, both with the intention of offering patient-centered and personalized training experiences.…”

“…However, it has been observed that this transition, at the beginning of students' clinical training, is a sensitive and stressful moment of their education, 12,13,21 which may affect their own competence confidence 22 and performance, 21 especially when confronted with patients' clinical uniqueness or anatomical diversity in irreversible treatments. 19 To date, little research has explored the impact on students' perceptions of simulated practice using both 3Dprinted and VR patient-specific models that reflect each patient's unique dentition. Thus, this pilot study, based on deliberate practice theory, 23 aimed to investigate the perceptions of dental students and their tutors about a deliberate simulated practice using patient-specific virtual and 3D-printed teeth models before they performed their first indirect posterior tooth restoration on their patients.…”