Evaluating usability of and satisfaction with two types of dental CAD software

PURPOSE: This study evaluated the usability of and satisfaction with two types of computer-aided design (CAD) software among users who had experience with dental implant CAD software and those who did not. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Dental technicians (n = 20) who had previous experience with dental implant CAD Software and students from the College of Dentistry (n = 12) who had never designed implant custom abutments were asked to evaluate two types of CAD Software, Exocad and Deltanine. In addition, the participants were asked to fill out a structured questionnaire (Section 1: Entering basic information and retrieving files; Section 2: Setting conditions before abutment design; Section 3: Setting abutment design; and Section 4: Overall satisfaction). For the statistical analysis of the collected data, Mann-Whitney U test was used (α = .05). RESULTS: The ease of design and satisfaction with the implant CAD Software, evaluated with respect to 21 statements divided into four Stages, were significantly higher for Exocad in both groups for Secion 1. For Sections 2 and 3, participants with experience evaluated Deltanine to be significantly better. For Section 4, both groups evaluated Exocad Software to be better. CONCLUSION: Overall, the Exocad Software was evaluated as having better usability and offering greater satisfaction. However, in terms of performance in the core of the design process, i.e. Sections 2 and 3, Deltanine was rated higher by the experienced users. Thus, if the user interface design parts are supplemented, Deltanine CAD Software could be put to a wider use in clinics.

Effect of repeated learning for two dental CAD software programs

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to assess the relationship between the time spent designing custom abutments and repeated learning using dental implant computer aided design (CAD) software. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The design of customized abutments was performed four stages using the 3DS CAD software and the EXO CAD software, and measured repeatedly three times by each stage. Learning effect by repetition was presented with the learning curve, and the significance of the reduction in the total time and the time at each stage spent on designing was evaluated using the Friedman test and the Wilcoxon signed rank test. The difference in the design time between groups was analyzed using the repeated measure two-way ANOVA. Statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS statistics software (P < 0.05). RESULTS: Repeated learning of the customized abutment design displayed a significant difference according to the number of repetition and the stage (P < 0.001). The difference in the time spent designing was found to be significant (P < 0.001), and that between the CAD software programs was also significant (P = 0.006). CONCLUSION: Repeated learning of CAD software shortened the time spent designing. While less design time on average was spent with the 3DS CAD than with the EXO CAD, the EXO CAD showed better results in terms of learning rate according to learning effect.