Artificial intelligence (AI) penetrates many areas of human life. Medicine is no exception. AI technologies facilitate the work of dentists, help to achieve accuracy in diagnostics and provide treatment as sparing as possible for the patient.
How AI helps in dental implantation
The possibilities of AI in dentistry are actively used in planning surgical and orthopedic treatment. At the beginning of the development of dental implantation, all preparatory work (analysis of the volume of the oral mucosa, bone tissue of the jaws, anatomically correct position of the implants) was carried out using an analog method based on the assessment of plaster casts of jaw models and two-dimensional X-rays.
Today, the gold standard for preparing a patient for an implantation or prosthetics operation is the analysis of three-dimensional computer images of the maxillofacial region, combined with a three-dimensional scan of the patient’s face and oral cavity.
Special software allows to conduct virtual planning of the position of the implant in the patient’s jaw with the most correct anatomical and orthopedic position. AI systems allow to position the implant in a few minutes. The doctor will spend about an hour on this.
The navigation protocol of the operation (all incisions in the oral cavity, the formation of a receptive bed in the bone under the implant) minimizes intraoperative complications, respectively, we get a predicted positive long-term result.
Revolution in diagnostics
Accumulated databases on diseases of the maxillofacial region and oral cavity allow software with AI functions to draw up a preliminary treatment plan for the patient, which also frees the doctor from routine work.
The last ten years have seen a real digital revolution in dentistry. A standard situation is when a doctor makes a preliminary diagnosis after analyzing computed tomography (CTG) and scans of the patient’s oral cavity. CTGs and scans consist of thousands of X-rays and photographs, “glued” by AI into a three-dimensional picture.
How teeth are restored using AI
Digital technologies make it possible to manufacture orthopedic structures by grinding them out on special equipment. A digital method of treating oral diseases (lack of teeth) is actively used. Primary consultation includes CTG, oral scan, photoprotocol (face, smile line, dental condition). Then there is preparation for implantation: virtual planning of the size and position of the implants. The next stage is 3D printing of the surgical template, which is used during surgery to form accurately the sensing bed for the implant. The implantation operation is carried out using a navigation tool kit.
AI is a very convenient and highly effective tool, including in the work of a dentist. But still – this is a tool in the hands of a person. The main thing is not to confuse AI with artificial consciousness.

By Alexey Telyatnikov, dental surgeon of the Krasnoyarsk clinic Sib Dental