Effectiveness of Augmented Reality with Haptic Feedback for Dental Implant Placement Training: An In-Vitro Comparative Study

Abstract

Dental implant placement requires accurate three-dimensional orientation, controlled drilling depth, appropriate angulation, and adequate tactile awareness. Traditional phantom-based implant training provides useful preclinical practice, but it may offer limited real-time visual and force-related feedback for novice learners. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of augmented reality combined with haptic feedback in dental implant placement training among dental students. A randomized in-vitro experimental design was proposed with 100 participants divided equally into a control group receiving traditional phantom/model-based training and an experimental group receiving AR+haptic feedback training. Participants completed pre-test and post-test implant placement tasks on standardized phantom or 3D-printed jaw models. Primary outcomes included entry point deviation, apex deviation, angular deviation, drilling depth error, procedure time, and procedural errors. Secondary outcomes included usability, workload, confidence, and satisfaction. Data were planned for analysis using descriptive statistics, paired samples t-test, independent samples t-test, repeated measures ANOVA, and non-parametric alternatives where appropriate. The proposed study expects that AR+haptic feedback will improve implant placement accuracy, reduce procedural errors, enhance user confidence, and lower perceived workload compared with traditional training. The findings may support the use of AR+haptic simulation as a supplementary tool in preclinical implant dentistry education.