User experience of and satisfaction with computer-aided design software when designing dental prostheses: a multicenter survey study.

Aim: The present study aimed to compare the responses and satisfaction reported by users with varying levels of experience regarding different types of CAD software programs to design crowns.

Materials And Methods: A questionnaire was used to evaluate user responses to five domains (software visibility, 3D-scanned data preparation, crown design and adjustment, finish line registration, and overall experience) of various CAD software programs. The study included 50 undergraduate dental students (inexperienced group) and 50 dentists or dental technicians from two hospitals (experienced group). The participants used four different CAD software programs (Meshmixer, Exocad, BlueSkyPlan, and Dentbird) to design crowns, then recorded their responses on a questionnaire. Statistical analyses included one-way and two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) to compare scores and verify the interaction between user response and experience.

Results: User evaluation scores in the domains of software visibility and 3D-scanned data preparation varied between software programs (P 0.001), with Exocad being favored by the experienced group. When evaluating crown design and finish line registration, Dentbird and Exocad scored significantly higher than the other software programs in both groups as they offered automation of the process using deep learning (P 0.001). Two-way ANOVA showed that prior experience of using CAD software significantly affected the users' responses to all questions (P 0.001).

Conclusions: User response and satisfaction varied with the type of CAD software program used to design dental prostheses, with prior experience of using such software playing a significant role. Automation of design functions can enhance user satisfaction with the software.