IDL in implant dentistry

At the Inselspital in Bern / Switzerland software for dental implant planning was developed and implemented with IDL 5.4. This software is able to perform multiplanar reformation of axial slices, yielding cross-sectional images that are either perpendicular or parallel to the curvature of the dental arch. In addition, a three-dimensional visualization of the bone structure is possible. Both of these features allow the preoperative assessment of potential implant positions. In contrast to other available software the dental implant planning can be done based on MRI data. This is an important step forward because, unlike CT, the patient is not exposed to radiation.

With the help of IDL’s build-in functions and its object-oriented-programming concept we could significantly reduce the time of implementation. Changes and new features were added easily. The user interface was created in no time, thanks to the GUI builder.