Computer-Aided Design and Manufacturing in Facial Prosthetics: A Review of the Literature

Introduction: Nowadays, CAD/CAM is used to treat facial substance loss as part of surgical treatment or prosthetic rehabilitation. The aim of our work is to review the literature in order to compare digital manufacturing technology with other conventional methods. Materials and methods: This is a literature review based on a search carried out at the beginning of 2022 on publications from the last ten years. A keyword-based search algorithm was used to highlight the most relevant articles on the topic in question. Results and discussion: After reading the 29 articles selected in their entirety, we make a critical comparison between the manufacture of facial prostheses by the digital method and the conventional method in all its aspects, to determine the contribution of CAD/CAM to the rehabilitation of facial substance loss both surgically and prosthetically. Conclusion: Our review concluded that digital technology and 3D printing have facilitated the fabrication of facial prostheses with maximum comfort for both patient and practitioner. The combination of these techniques with conventional techniques is sometimes essential for better results.