Computer-guided surgical exposure of palatally displaced canines: a technical note

Aim: To present a minimally invasive approach to expose palatally displaced canines (PDCs) using a surgical guide.
Materials and methods: Surgical guides for palatal canine exposure are fabricated with CAD/CAM technology. With adequate software, it is possible to match the STL files of the dental arch with the DICOM images of the maxilla. On the STL 3D model file, the operator can localize and determine the exact position of the impacted canine. In turn, this allows the identification of the ideal location of the window. A software application facilitates the design of the surgical guide, which is printed using a 3D printer.
Results: Exposure of PDCs can be achieved satisfactorily using surgical guides.
Conclusions: The use of computer-guided surgical exposure of PDCs allows both the reduction of surgical time and surgical invasiveness, minimizing patients’ postoperative discomfort. Controlled clinical trials are necessary to evaluate more fully any advantages of this minimally invasive technique.