Modern Advances in Dentistry: MMIs

1. Robots
2. Regrowing teeth
3. Lasers

Robots

• There are some really good articles about robots and AI in dentistry
• Surgical robots have been available for many years but took longer to reach dentistry
• In 2019, a robot in China implanted two new 3D printed teeth in a patient without any human intervention
• Yomi, the first and only FDA-cleared robot assisted dental surgery system has performed over 1000 implants with the aid of dentists (or rather aiding the dentist).
  • The robot arm can physically resist motion outside the bounds of a preplanned procedure
    • Acts like a lane assist in a care
  • Problems with this include unforeseen problems and the need to adapt on the fly.
• Robots are also used for more accurate diagnosis- such as predicting cases of MRONJ.
• The idea is not for robots to replace dentists, but to complement ehri experience in reaching a new level of accuracy and better patient care.
• Robots can focus for longer, ignore the lack of an ergonomic work environment as well as mental and physical overload.
• There are many applications for robots in dental education
• However, there are still imitations in technology and robots are not economically viable to become mainstream.
• Another problem is that patient compliance and acceptance with robots being involved in a procedure decreases as the procedure becomes more invasive.

Regrowing teeth

• The dental pulp contains stem cells which can be stimulated to regrow dentin and act as a filling.
  • Tooth banks can be created from baby teeth that fall out naturally
  • This is a better to harvest stem cells compared to from bone marrow or blood.
• In an ideal world, teeth could be stimulated to regenerate.
  • KCL has managed to do this with mice
    • Ethical issues with doing this in people
  • Also has managed to stimulate stem cells using an Alzheimer’s drug in 2017
• Currently we can 3D print teeth
• In 2019, scientists in China created a gel that allowed enamel to repair itself within 48 hours
  • But the enamel was 400x thinner than regular enamel

Lasers

• Uses
  • Reshape gums and remove bacteria during root canal
  • Removing decay
  • Cauterising wounds
  • Tooth whitening (peroxide bleaching solution)
  • Biopsies
• Alternative to drills which can be anxiety inducing
• Can induce less pain
• May have shorter recovery times for patients
• Local anaesthetic is usually not required
• Limitations:
  • Can’t be used for fillings already in place
  • Not always an alternative for traditional drills
  • Anaesthetic may still be required
  • Expensive