Properties of Acrylic Resin For CAD/CAM: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of In Vitro Studies.

PURPOSE: This systematic review and meta-analysis of in vitro studies compared the prepolymerized acrylic resin used for CAD/CAM complete denture manufacturing versus the heat-polymerized acrylic resin for conventional complete dentures in terms of surface roughness, wettability, hardness and flexural strength. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An electronic search was performed in the PubMed, Embase, LILACS and Web of Science databases, without language or date restrictions. Gray literature and manual search tools were also used. The systematic review was carried out by two researchers independently, following the inclusion criteria: in vitro studies testing the CAD/CAM acrylic resin with a control group of heat-polymerized acrylic resin which compared at least one of the four material properties above. The meta-analysis was performed separately for each property, using a random effect model. RESULTS: Of the 914 studies found by means of search strategies, 698 were selected for the systematic review. After applying the eligibility criteria, only 17 articles were selected for the qualitative analysis in the systematic review; among these, 14 were included in the quantitative meta-analysis. The CAD/CAM prepolymerized acrylic resin in blocks had similar properties when compared to heat-polymerized acrylic resin in almost all outcome measures, with the exception of a statistically significant reduction in surface roughness. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the findings of this systematic review and meta-analysis, equally satisfactory results can be expected from dental prosthesis manufactured by the CAD/CAM system when compared to conventional ones, with the additional potential of reducing the pigmentation and attached microorganisms due to the reduced surface roughness of the prepolymerized resin.