Complete Digital Workflow for Evaluation of the Three-Dimensional Monson's Sphere Using Digital Scanning

Area of Science:

• Dental occlusion analysis
• 3D modeling in dentistry
• Digital dentistry workflows

Background:

• The Monson sphere integrates the curves of Spee and Wilson, representing 3D tooth arrangement.
• It serves as a crucial reference for occlusal analysis in prosthodontics and orthodontics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To digitally generate and analyze the three-dimensional (3D) Monson sphere.
• To investigate its application using intraoral scanning and custom software.

Main Methods:

• Acquired intraoral scans from 64 Chinese adults with normal occlusion.
• Digitized 26 landmarks using reverse engineering software.
• Generated the 3D Monson sphere via a least-squares best-fit algorithm in custom software.

Main Results:

• Successfully generated the 3D Monson sphere using a digital workflow.
• The mean radius was 77.35 ± 13.38 mm, lower than Monson's theoretical value.
• Significant differences in radius were found between males and females (p < 0.001).

Conclusions:

• A novel digital best-fit algorithm for 3D Monson sphere generation was developed.
• The study established a lower Monson sphere radius for Chinese adults compared to classical values.
• Findings provide valuable references for dental prosthetic and orthodontic treatments.