Journal of Prosthodontics News
September 16, 2026
The Accuracy of Reverse Scan Body Technique for Capturing Full-Arch Implant Impressions: An in vitro study
Now online in the Journal of Prosthodontics, a study on the accuracy of digital impressions co-authored by ACP members Ahmed Elsayyad, BDS, MSc and Christopher Wyatt, BSc, DMD, MSc, Dip Pros, FRCDC.
Digital impressions, recorded using intraoral scanners and implant scan bodies (ISBs), can be superior to conventional impressions in terms of speed and patient comfort but have shown inconsistent accuracy. The reverse scan body (RSB) relies on intraoral pick-up of the interim prosthesis, checking the passivity of the picked-up prosthesis, and extraoral scanning by the intraoral scanner.
This study aimed to assess the accuracy of full-arch implant prostheses milled using the RSB impression technique compared to those generated from a digitized master cast using a desktop scanner.
A mandibular All-on-4 master cast was created and digitized using a reference desktop scanner. For each RSB scan (Group 1), an interim milled polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) prosthesis was picked up from the cast, RSBs were hand-tightened, and captured using an intraoral scanner (IOS). For Group 2, abutment-level scan bodies were hand-tightened into the multiunit abutments (MUAs) of the master cast and scanned using a desktop scanner.
The digital deviation and clinical passivity (modified one screw and screw resistance tests) between the milled zirconia prosthesis from each group were compared to the master cast. The results showed that the RSB technique was inferior to the desktop scan in terms of digital impression and definitive prostheses accuracy. However, the RSB technique produced zirconia prostheses within the clinically acceptable deviation value of 0.15 mm.
Elsayyad A, Wyatt C, Bryant R, Gebril M. The accuracy of reverse scan body technique for capturing full-arch digital implant impressions: An in vitro study. J Prosthodont 2026; https://doi.org/10.1111/jopr.70235
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