Enhancing Undergraduate Dental Student Comprehension of Occlusal Balance in Complete Dentures through Small-Group...

Understanding occlusal balance in complete dentures requires conceptualizing mandibular movement and denture dynamics, which many dental students find difficult. This study introduced and evaluated an instructional digital model designed to facilitate accurate 3-dimensional and dynamic representation of these phenomena. This model allowed 360° visualization of mandibular movement and denture dynamics. Its effectiveness was evaluated when used in conjunction with small-group discussions (SGDs) for teaching occlusal balance to undergraduate dental students. Fifth-year students (n=128) at Tokyo Dental College completed both an SGD session and a digital-model learning session, with the order randomized at the small-group level (SGD-first group, n=67; digital model-first group, n=61). Comprehension was assessed using a pre-test and two posttests administered after each session (post-test 1 and post-test 2), each scored on a 10-point scale. Inter- and intra-group comparisons were performed using the Mann-Whitney U and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, respectively. There were no significant differences between the SGD-first and digital model-first groups in pre-test (4.01±1.90 vs. 4.20±2.00) or post-test 1 scores (5.12±1.91 vs. 4.54±2.20). After completing both sessions, post-test 2 scores were higher in students who completed SGD followed by digital model learning (6.12±2.09) than in those who completed digital model learning followed by SGD (5.59±2.10), with a statistically significant difference between instructional sequences (p=0.046). Intra-group analyses also showed a statistically significant difference between post-test 1 and post-test 2 in both groups, with higher scores at post-test 2 (p<0.05). These results suggest that combining SGDs with the digital model enhances student comprehension of occlusal schemes and balance as it allows these phenomena to be confirmed visually.