Purpose: The purpose of this study was to develop a method for classifying dental arches using a convolutional neural network (CNN) as the first step in a system for designing removable partial dentures.
Methods: Using 1184 images of dental arches (maxilla: 748 images; mandible: 436 images), arches were classified into four arch types: edentulous, intact dentition, arches with posterior tooth loss, and arches with bounded edentulous space. A CNN method to classify images was developed using Tensorflow and Keras deep learning libraries. After completion of the learning procedure, the diagnostic accuracy, precision, recall, F-measure and area under the curve (AUC) for each jaw were calculated for diagnostic performance of learning. The classification was also predicted using other images, and percentages of correct predictions (PCPs) were calculated. The PCPs were compared with the Kruskal-Wallis test (p = 0.05).
Results: The diagnostic accuracy was 99.5% for the maxilla and 99.7% for the mandible. The precision, recall, and F-measure for both jaws were 0.25, 1.0 and 0.4, respectively. The AUC was 0.99 for the maxilla and 0.98 for the mandible. The PCPs of the classifications were more than 95% for all types of dental arch. There were no significant differences among the four types of dental arches in the mandible.
Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that dental arches can be classified and predicted using a CNN. Future development of systems for designing removable partial dentures will be made possible using this and other AI technologies.
Keywords: Artificial intelligence; Convolutional neural network; Machine learning; Removable partial denture.