Clinical activities suspended: How the COVID-19 affected the self-confidence of Italian dental students

Introduction: COVID-19 emergency caused several effects on the dental educational system, especially affecting courses including practical activities. The study aims to evaluate the impact of the suspension of dental clinical activities on the Italian dental students' self-confidence. Furthermore, the other purpose of the research is to find an integrative didactics solution to improve the clinical training of dentistry during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and methods: A questionnaire was administered to evaluate the impact of the suspension of clinical activities on dental students' self-confidence. A 67-questions survey tested the students' self-confidence in several dental disciplines (Conservative Dentistry, Endodontics, Oral Surgery and Dental Emergency). The study reached a sample of 193 dental students and the answers from 9 different Italian dental schools were analysed. Results: The degree of students' self-confidence for all the dental disciplines investigated was found statistically different between the periods before and after the interruption of clinical activities. The students proposed, as a potential solution to improve their practice during the COVID-19 pandemic, to combinate the use of a video tutorials and dental simulators. Conclusion: The interruption of the training in clinical practice significantly affected the educational career and the self-confidence of students. An alternative teaching method involving the use of video tutorials as support in teaching clinical procedures deserves to be considered

Digital Dental Models: Is Photogrammetry an Alternative to Dental Extraoral and Intraoral Scanners?

Background: 3D models are nowadays part of daily clinical practice. Photogrammetry is a brand-new method for transforming small objects into 3D models while keeping their original shape and size. The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy, in terms of precision and trueness, of a digital dental model acquired with photogrammetry compared with those obtained using extraoral scanners and intraoral scanners, starting from the same plaster model. Methods: A plaster model was converted into a digital model using photogrammetry, an extraoral scanner and an intraoral scanner. Different references were measured twice at a distance of 30 min for each model, on the digital models using the software Blender and on the plaster model using a calibre. The Interclass Correlation Coefficient was calculated for each pair of measurements. A volumetric analysis was performed by superimposing the digital models. The coefficient of variation was calculated. A two-way ANOVA test was conducted. Results: For each reference, the coefficient of variation was less than 3%, and the two ANOVA tests resulted in a non-significant value in both cases (p > 0.05). The volumetric analysis demonstrated good agreement between the models derived from the different acquisition methods. Conclusions: Photogrammetry seems to be a good method for acquiring digital models starting from a plaster model, all the methods tested seem to be good for obtaining an accurate three-dimensional digital model. Other studies are needed to evaluate clinical efficacy