Principal Investigators:
Vinicius Dutra, Clinical Associate Professor, Oral Pathology, Medicine and Radiology, School of Dentistry.
Aline de Castilho, Assistant Professor, Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dentistry.
Project Title:
Bringing Anatomy and Pathology to Life Using 3D-Printed Color Models
Funding Level:
$10,000
Abstract:
This project enhanced the predoctoral dental curriculum by integrating advanced 3D visualization—3D color models and AI-driven cinematic CBCT reconstructions—into DENT D751 and D752 (Clinical Radiology I and II) and DENT D790 (Pediatric Dentistry Clinical Rotation I). Built from anonymized CBCT and panoramic data, the models represent common maxillofacial lesions and successive stages of tooth development (primary, mixed, and permanent dentition), helping students grasp the three-dimensional anatomy underlying radiographic interpretation. The enhancement was designed for equity and inclusion: by offering reusable, scalable color and monochrome resources and embedding them in low-stakes, small-group activities, it removed cost and availability barriers associated with osteological specimens and gave every student hands-on access regardless of background. A reproducible AI-based workflow allowed the team to generate 30 anatomically coherent 3D color models without labor-intensive manual segmentation. Student perceptions, gathered through Likert-scale surveys, were strongly positive: in Clinical Radiology II, every student surveyed reported that the rendering improved their understanding and made interpretation easier than the panoramic image, and 90% judged the level of detail appropriate. The work advanced faculty development in inclusive educational technology and was disseminated through two posters at IUSD Research Day 2026, with more planned.