Method for pre-operative visualization of instrumentation used with a surgical guide for dental implant placement

Inventors

Berckmans, III, Bruce • Suttin, Zachary B

Assignees

Biomet 3I LLC

Abstract

The invention relates to manufacturing a surgical guide to be placed in a patient's mouth. The patient's mouth is scanned to obtain surgical-region scan data at a region where an implant is to be located. The patient's mouth is also scanned in the opened position to acquire dental conditions opposite from the surgical region so as to obtain opposing-condition scan data. A virtual model is developed using the surgical-region scan data and the opposing-condition scan data. Using the virtual model, a surgical plan is developed that includes the location of the implant to be installed in the patient. A virtual surgical guide is also developed based on the surgical plan. The dimensions of instrumentation to be used with the surgical guide are checked to ensure they will fit within the mouth by use of the opposing-condition scan data. After checking, final surgical-guide manufacturing information is obtained for manufacturing the surgical guide.

Core Innovation

The invention provides a system for creating a surgical plan including a surgical protocol of instrumentation to be used to install at least one dental implant into a patient's mouth during surgery. The computer develops a virtual model of the patient's mouth using scan data and receives or develops a surgical plan that includes a surgical region to receive the at least one dental implant. Based on the surgical plan and the virtual model, the computer develops a virtual surgical guide and receives open-mouth scan data of the patient with an opened position of the patient's mouth.

The system determines available jaw or opposing dimensions using the open-mouth scan data and the virtual surgical guide. For each planning determination, it determines a first available dimension measured from the surgical region of the patient's top or bottom jaw to an opposing region of the other of the patient's top or bottom jaw when the patient's mouth is in the opened position. The computer also determines a second available dimension from the virtual surgical guide to dental structures that are opposing the surgical region using the open-mouth scan data.

The system compares the first and second available dimensions to a dimension of the instrumentation to be used with the at least one dental implant. When the second available dimension is greater than the dimension of the instrumentation, the system obtains final surgical-guide manufacturing information; otherwise, it obtains final manufacturing information responsive to the comparison behavior.

In a related embodiment, the system receives surgical-region scan data and open-mouth scan data and merges them into a virtual model of the patient's mouth. It determines a first available dimension from the surgical region of the patient's top or bottom jaw to an opposing region of the other of the patient's top or bottom jaw when the patient's jaw is at the opened position using the virtual model, compares the first available dimension to a dimension of at least a first instrument to be used with the at least one dental implant, and, in response to the first available dimension being greater than the instrument dimension, creates a surgical plan from the virtual model.

Claims Coverage

The partial content includes two independent claims that define a computer-aided system for creating a surgical plan and, in one case, a virtual surgical guide with dimension-based comparison to stored instrumentation dimensions. Across the independent claims, the core inventive features include virtual model development from scan data, determination of available dimensions in an opened-mouth position, comparison to stored instrument dimensions, and generation of a surgical plan and/or final surgical-guide manufacturing information based on the comparison condition.

Across the independent claims, the system merges scan data to create a virtual model, determines available dimensions from opened-mouth anatomy and/or from a virtual surgical guide, compares those dimensions to stored instrumentation dimensions, and, depending on the comparison condition, creates a surgical plan and/or obtains final surgical-guide manufacturing information. A memory device stores the instrumentation dimensions for use during the surgery.

Stated Advantages

Documented Applications