Transforming Dental Care, Practice and Education with Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing: Innovations in Materials, Technologies, and Future Pathways

Additive manufacturing (AM), commonly known as 3D printing, is revolutionizing modern dentistry, introducing high-precision, patient-specific, and digital-driven workflows across prosthodontics, orthodontics, implantology, and maxillofacial surgery. Extensive analysis explores the leading platforms in 3D printing such as stereolithography (SLA), fused deposition modeling (FDM), selective laser sintering (SLS), digital light processing (DLP), and PolyJet which all achieve superior performance across multiple areas including resolution capabilities, material compatibility options, clinical application readiness, and cost-effectiveness. Additionally, an extensive overview of common materials, including biocompatible polymers (PLA, PMMA, PEEK), metals (titanium, cobalt-chromium), and ceramics (zirconia, alumina, glass-ceramics), sheds light on the critical role of material selection for patient safety, durability, and functional performance. The review explores new advancements such as 4D printing with shape-adaptive smart biomaterials as well as artificial intelligence-enabled digital processes and prosthesis design for the transformation of regenerative dentistry and intraoral drug delivery operations into new domains and the automation of clinical planning. Equally groundbreaking are 3D printing applications in pediatric dentistry, surgical simulation, and dental education. However, full-scale adoption of AM technology is not without challenges, including material toxicity, regulatory hurdles for approval, high initial investments, and the need for extensive digital expertise training. Sustainability concerns are also being addressed, with recycled materials and circular economy models gaining traction. In conclusion, this article advocates for a future where dentistry is shaped by interdisciplinary collaboration, intelligent automation, and hyper-personalized biocompatible solutions, with 3D printing firmly established as the backbone of next-generation dental care.