From scanning to restoration: How digital errors affect the success of prosthetic treatment

Digital workflows have become an integral part of modern prosthetic practice. For the generation currently entering the profession, intraoral scanning, CAD design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) are no longer technologies of the future, but everyday working tools. However, access to these technologies comes with a pitfall: the impression that software can correct everything. In reality, the accuracy of a restoration is limited by the quality of the initial data, and the optical impression is the foundation upon which the entire process is built.
This presentation aims to show students where and what goes wrong most frequently in intraoral scanning. Dr Andreea Custură will address the main sources of error. These include insufficient isolation of the scanning area, which allows saliva, blood and cervical fluid to distort the scan. Next is inadequate gingival retraction, which leaves the subgingival margins unrecorded. Incorrect scanning strategies will also be discussed, including frequent image-overlap errors with full arches, difficulties caused by reflective surfaces and soft-tissue mobility, as well as errors in occlusion recording.
Each type of error will be linked to specific clinical consequences: poor marginal fit, incorrect proximal and occlusal contacts, lengthy chairside adjustments and remakes that cost time, money and the patient’s trust. Finally, the presentation will propose a practical protocol that is easy to apply right from the early years of study.