Aim: The purpose of this study was to compare the surface roughness of denture bases fabricated through 3D printing and those fabricated by the conventional fabrication technique.
Methodology: In this in-vitro study a total of 20 denture bases were fabricated, half of them were fabricated from heat cured poly methyl methacrylate resin by the conventional flask compression technique. The other 10 denture bases were fabricated from liquid photo curable polymethyl methacrylate through three dimensional printing using a Liquid Crystal Display printer. A contact stylus profilometer was used to measure the surface roughness of the polished and fitting denture base surfaces of both groups. All the denture bases of both groups were then immersed in artificial saliva for 1 week at a controlled temperature in an incubator, then the surface roughness was measured again. The samples were then immersed for 3 more weeks and the surface roughness was re-evaluated.
Results: The results showed higher mean value of surface roughness in the 3D printed group compared to the conventional group. There was a statistically significant difference between two groups where (p<0.001).
Conclusion: The three dimensional fabrication technique resulted in higher surface roughness of both the fitting and polished surfaces when compared to denture bases fabricated by the conventional flask compression technique.