Evaluation of the clinical application of personalized 3D printing and CAD/CAM resin crowns to replace stainless steel crowns in paediatric dentistry

Background: Children with dental caries are treated with stainless steel metal crowns (SSC), but the aesthetics and precision still need to be improved. Currently, both 3D-printed resin crowns (PRC) and computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacture (CAD/CAM) resin crowns (CRC) meet the clinical requirements for crown applications in terms of strength, production time, cost, and aesthetics. Aim: This study replaced SSC with customized resin crowns by 3D printing and CAD/CAM. Design: In this study, PRC, CRC, and SSC were used for incisor and molar restorations, and 60 crowns were made with 10 for each group. The fabrication efficiency, surface characteristics, marginal fit, and stability of the two different crowns were evaluated. Results: PRC and CRC show superior color and surface characteristics, though production times are longer (5.3–12.4 times and 3.3–9.1 times, respectively) than for SSC (p <.05). They, however, can be completed within 80 min. Edge gaps for PRC and CRC are significantly lower (13.0–19.2 times and 13.0–13.7 times) than for SSC (p <.05). All materials exhibit good stability. Conclusion: The 3D-PRCs and CAD/CAM resin crowns may replace SSCs as a potential choice for clinical child caries.