Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42332665›Full record

Observational studyBMC oral health2026

Evaluation of the application of three dimensional-printed occlusal splint in conservative treatment of condylar fractures.

Difei Zhang, Kun Lv

Abstract readObservational Study
In one paragraph

Observational study in BMC oral health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Difei ZhangState Key Laboratory of Oral & Maxillofacial Reconstruction and Regeneration, Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedicine Ministry of Education, Hubei Key Laboratory of Stomatology, School & Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, 237 Luoyu Road, Wuhan, 430079, People's Republic of China.
Kun LvState Key Laboratory of Oral & Maxillofacial Reconstruction and Regeneration, Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedicine Ministry of Education, Hubei Key Laboratory of Stomatology, School & Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, 237 Luoyu Road, Wuhan, 430079, People's Republic of China. lvkun@whu.edu.cn.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundConservative treatment of condylar fractures requires the use of occlusal splints. However, limited mouth opening, pain, and tooth damage often prevent timely impression taking, which hinders the fabrication of the occlusal splints. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a convenient and new method. The objective of this study is to evaluate the clinical outcomes and feasibility of innovative 3D-printed occlusal splints for the conservative treatment of condylar fractures.

methodsThis was a retrospective observational case series study aimed to investigate the clinical outcomes of 3D-printed occlusal splints in the conservative treatment of condylar fractures. The patients were divided into pediatric, adolescent, and adult groups according to age. The 3D-printed occlusal splint was secured to the maxilla for 2 months. Patients were instructed to perform mouth-opening exercises daily. Mouth opening was recorded before treatment and at the 3-month follow-up. Data were statistically analyzed.

resultsAfter 3 months of follow-up, no patients reported persistent pain, with mouth-opening and masticatory functions recovered. The postoperative mouth opening of all three groups was significantly greater compared with preoperative values, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). Regarding deviation of the mandible during mouth opening, the adolescent group showed significant improvement postoperatively (P < 0.05), whereas no statistically significant difference was observed in the pediatric group and the adult group.

conclusionThe use of a 3D-printed occlusal splint combined with mouth-opening exercises is a feasible approach for the conservative treatment of condylar fractures.

Indexed as

Conservative TreatmentMandibular CondyleMandibular FracturesOcclusal SplintsPrinting, Three-DimensionalAdolescentAdultChildFemaleHumansMaleRetrospective StudiesTreatment OutcomeYoung AdultCondyleConservative TreatmentFractureMandibularOcclusal SplintsThree-Dimensional Printing

Identifiers

PMID42332665
PMCPMC13483849

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.