About the Straumann® Prosthetic Selection Guide and how to make the “perfect choice” for each indication

Choosing the right abutment and prosthetic parts can seem complex and time-consuming.

With the right approach things suddenly become much more straightforward! The perception of prosthetic complexity is largely related to the impression that “everything does everything”, and the selection of the right abutment can be perceived as quite difficult when there is no clear selection path.  Indeed, prosthetic parts are all designed for specific clinical situations, with some products being close indication-wise, however with distinctive features and benefits.  Straumann aims at better supporting and improving the selection process in daily practice. Thanks to a new digital tool, the Straumann^® Prosthetic Selection Guide, dental professionals are guided through an easy selection process that facilitates the communication between all parties involved. Whether they are already familiar with Straumann’s unparalleled prosthetic diversity or still in the discovery phase, the Prosthetic Selection Guide will help professionals make the “perfect choice” for each indication.

Download the Straumann® Prosthetic Selection Guide

About Dr Nuno Filipe Sousa Rocha and Inês Fernandes

In the following interview, Dr Nuno Filipe Sousa Rocha and Inês Fernandes from LIF Dental Lab share their experience with the Prosthetic Selection Guide. Dr Sousa Rocha practices in two clinics in Portugal. In the IROV Clinic, Viseu, he manages all issues related to implant planning and rehabilitation as the expert in implantology. Within this clinic, he collaborates with the LIF Dental lab, owned by Inês Fernandes. The clinic uses the 3Shape Trios scanner combined with Implant Studio, while the dental lab uses a desktop scanner for CADCAM. Nowadays, their work is more digital than analog, starting with the digital planning. However, if needed, the team always appreciates the possibility to revert to an analog approach. All types of treatments are performed in the clinic, although patients are increasingly looking for immediate procedures. Their good collaboration is a key factor that helps them succeed in the digital workflow.

How did you learn about the Prosthetic Selection Guide?

Sousa: I saw it first online when I was searching for Straumann. Then our Straumann sales rep, Hélia Martins, talked about it while visiting us. This is how we learned about it. I had already installed the application, but did not use it a lot before our sales rep came and we explored it together. The Prosthetic Selection Guide is very easy to use and very intuitive; it can guide you throughout the process of choosing the components, whether you would like to rehabilitate a provisional or make a final restoration for those cases where the surgery has already been performed, but also for those cases that you are planning in the future.

Fernandes: We were curious about it and to discover what this app is about. In the end, it proved to be a pleasant surprise. The reason for that is because we can first visualize the components, and it is very easy and fast to get what we need for the cases.

We now use the app jointly with Dr. Sousa Rocha's clinic, but also with other clinics.

In what kind of cases has the Prosthetic Selection Guide proved to be particularly useful?

Sousa: Well, in daily practice, we need to have these kinds of tools especially to help plan a surgery. I can plan with my assistant, and together we select the parts that we have in stock to proceed with our rehabilitation. Our daily use of the app helps us plan cases and coordinate with the dental assistant on what needs to be ordered. Before the app, we were using the “Who is Who” system map a lot. Even with that map, it was not so easy to find the correct information as it displayed a lot of details. Today, thanks to the app, we can collaborate with my assistant in a very simple way. In the daily routine we have standard protocols, and this app allows us to go through the workflow and know the possibilities within those processes that we already have in place. It appears to you in a very simple and clear way, you do not need to search what kind of piece you can use here and there. That is what makes it useful in my view. In the end, we have the PDF summary, and from there we can really aggregate the information to the patient. That is what makes it worthwhile.

“Before, even with the comprehensive “Straumann Who is Who” product map, it was not so easy to find the correct information. Today, thanks to the PSG app, I can collaborate with my assistant in a very simple way.” Dr Sousa Rocha
 

Is there anything that you think is missing in this app?

Fernandes: A search engine to find the components by reference number would be nice. Another nice feature could be to see other options for the same case that could help us be even faster.

Sousa: What you could improve for my assistant is to place images of the components working together to better see what we are talking about. That would help my assistant see the overall system working together.  This type of educational material with illustrations showing how the parts can be used together would be helpful.

What about your experience with abutment selection?

Fernandes: Selection is very easy. The subdivision into abutment groups such as standard, high esthetics or advanced cases serves as an initial filter. After that, it is easy to navigate from one workflow step to the next using the filters available in the app. Thanks to those filters, further case-specific sorting is possible. To date, we have used all the filters available, for example abutment height or diameter. From my point of view, no filters are missing, and the height and angulation are the most important ones.

“Navigating through the app helped us find new treatment options that we hadn´t considered before” Inês Fernandes
 

Did you learn about any product that you did not know about before?

Fernandes: We did not really discover any new products, but navigating through the app helped us find new treatment options that we had not used before.

Sousa: Yes, without doubt, the fact that all the components related to the implant and platform in question are displayed, gave us more choices for our rehabilitation.

Has the Prosthetic Selection Guide changed anything in the way you work and collaborate?

Sousa: Any tool that can improve the way we decide, and any tool that can increase the time we save, should be made available. This app is just one more tool.  If we create an algorithm that can help us decide more easily and better in terms of artificial intelligence (AI), this would be an advantage not only in the planning, but also for choosing the right tools to rehabilitate. With the daily routine, our minds tend to create bias. Tools like the Prosthetic Selection Guide can highlight pathways that we had not thought about. This kind of tool shortlists the possibilities and presents you with a range of possible options. All in all, the Prosthetic Selection Guide is a simple app that can provide more guidance when it comes to the clinical decisions.

“With daily routine, our minds tend to create bias. Tools like the Prosthetic Selection Guide can highlight pathways that we had not thought about.” Dr Sousa Rocha

How do you see the future needs of the dentists and the labs? What would make a difference in the future?

Fernandes: Having an app which, when provided with just a photo, would immediately identify the implant, platform and gingival height and automatically select the most suitable component to use in every case.

Sousa: We are becoming 100% digital in all areas, so this tool will allow us to place our orders quickly, simply and without mistakes. I imagine in the future that this application will go from being merely informative, to allow us to directly place the order online. Another expected feature for the lab is to have the eShop link. We could start and finish right away.

Thank you, Dr. Sousa Rocha and Inês Fernandes for sharing your informed views with us.

Conclusion

The Prosthetic Selection Guide is another step in supporting dental professionals on their journey with instantly accessible adapted options. After this interview (April 2020), a new version of the Prosthetic Selection Guide was released. This offers the possibility to directly transfer the user’s selection to the Straumann eShop basket. *

*Feature available in markets having access to the new eShop platform. User account required.

Download the Straumann® Prosthetic Selection Guide