In modern dental prosthetics, the use of CAD (Computer-Aided Design) technology has become essential for achieving high precision and efficiency in the creation of dental restorations. An individual dental abutment is a component of the dental implant system, designed to connect the implant to the prosthetic replacement (dental crown or bridge). It is specifically constructed for each patient, considering unique anatomical characteristics, such as the angle and depth of implant placement, the diameter of the opening in the tissue around the implanted implant, the shape of the gums, and the position of adjacent teeth. Specialized dental CAD tools (e.g., Exocad or 3Shape) are commonly used for designing and adjusting individual dental abutments, as their features and interface are optimized for the needs of dental technicians. However, due to their specific purpose, these tools have certain limitations in terms of flexibility and the ability to model complex 3D geometries. In the context of designing such abutments, the potential use of traditional engineering CAD tools (e.g., PTC Creo, SolidWorks) and tools for modeling NURBS curves (e.g., Rhinoceros 3D) comes into play. In collaboration with Neo Dens, this paper compares the approaches to CAD modeling using these three types of tools and provides guidelines for their use in the design and adjustment of individual dental abutments.
