Evaluation of occlusal rest seats with 3D technology in dental education.

The preparation of rest seats must comply with specific sizes and shapes. Various technological systems such as Kavo PrepAssistant have been used as an auxiliary method to evaluate preclinical preparations more objectively. The aims of this study were to establish an alternative system for evaluating occlusal rest seats and to compare different types of assessment. Seventy-six undergraduate students at Oporto University Faculty of Dental Medicine in Portugal were selected as a convenience sample to prepare two occlusal rest seats in Kavo teeth #45 and #46 (FDI World Dental Federation ISO-3950) and were randomly assigned to two groups. Bearing in mind the ideal characteristics of rest seats, the investigators defined ten assessment parameters, and their evaluation weights were independently estimated by three evaluators. Four of these parameters were measured in Kavo PrepAssistant. The results of the different evaluation methods and evaluators varied considerably. The classical evaluation presented final results worse than those of the evaluations using parameters. In this study, carrying out the assessment with Kavo PrepAssistant helped to achieve a more objective and less evaluator-dependent final evaluation.