A teaching model for endodontic surgery

It is often difficult to achieve realistic simulation in teaching endodontic surgery. There is relatively little material available to students other than animal tissue or human cadavers. We propose a working model for the teaching of this discipline, constructed from casts of a natural skull which reproduce anatomical features such as gingiva, maxillary sinus, or mandibular canal, for example. This model, made of polyurethane resin containing mineral particles, which closely simulates the radiological and tactile differences of the relative densities of spongy bone, cortical bone and teeth, permits close simulation of the conditions under which endodontic surgery may be performed.