Factors Affecting Trueness of Intraoral Scans: An Update

Abstract

Background: Intraoral scanning (IOS) technologies have been constantly developed and improved. This systematic review aimed at assessing studies in the recent literature describing factors that influence the trueness of intraoral scans. Methods: Comparative in vitro and in vivo (i.e., interventional and observational) studies that quantitatively assessed the trueness of intraoral scans and that identified factors significantly affecting IOS trueness values were considered eligible for inclusion. The PUBMED and EMBASE databases were searched for articles published in the last two years (from February 2020 to February 2022). Data assessment and extraction were performed according to the guidelines of the PRISMA statement. Results: The present search strategy yielded 13 publications. An initial screening of the publications was performed using abstracts and key words, and after application of exclusion criteria, a total of nine studies were finally identified as eligible to be discussed. Several factors significantly affecting IOS were identified. Conclusions: Studies using current IOS technologies revealed that the device, scanning distance, operator experience, rescanning and post-processing scans, conditions of the preparations and presence of adjacent teeth are factors significantly affecting IOS trueness.