A Digital-Conventional Integrated Teaching Method Used in Preclinical Full Crown Preparation Courses: A Randomized Controlled Trial

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of the digital-conventional integrated teaching method on prosthetics preclinically in full crown preparation courses.

Fifty-eight undergraduate dental students were randomly divided into a conventional group (CG) and a digital-conventional integrated group (DG). The preclinical course was composed of two phases. In the first phase, students from both groups were trained in full crown preparation with the conventional teaching method. In the second phase, the students in the CG group were still trained with the conventional teaching method, whereas the students in the DG group practiced with a digital real-time training and evaluation system. The crown preparation test was conducted after training. The reduction amount, margin, taper, undercuts, finishing status and protection of the adjacent tooth and gingiva were evaluated by senior experts. Crown preparations were also graded by a digital assessment system. Students' opinions were investigated with questionnaires.

The differences between the scores for the CG and DG groups were not significant, as evaluated by experts (p = 0.398) and a digital assessment system (p = 0.075). The questionnaires response rate was 100%. The digital-conventional integrated teaching method had a significantly higher score for the preparation sequence (p = 0.002), according to the questionnaires. The conventional teaching method had significantly higher scores for efficiency (p < 0.001), posture (p = 0.010) and preference (p < 0.001).

The digital-conventional integrated teaching method can achieve the same effect as the conventional teaching method in crown preparation training. It is beneficial for students to master the preparation sequence and is likely to be promising in preclinical full crown preparation courses.