Insights on the Digitalization of Dental Practices in Germany

Objectives: Digitalization has the potential to revolutionize dental practice workflow. However, it remains unclear to what extent modern technologies have found their way into dental practices in Germany. The aim of this study was to investigate the technical requirements, dental treatment procedures and attitudes towards digitalization of dentists in Germany using an online questionnaire.
Methods: Methods: Between April and June 2023, dentists in six German states were invited by email to complete an online questionnaire with 43 questions on various topics related to digitization, as well as demographic questions. Descriptive analysis was conducted.
Results: Questionnaires of 1005 dentists (43.8% female, mean age 51.9±10.5 years) were analyzed, resulting in a response rate of 4.2%. A high degree of digitization was found in administrative areas (digital patient records: n=728; digital appointment calendar: n=619) as well as in digital dental radiography (n=639). In terms of digital workflow, intraoral scanners (n=270) were more common in dental practices than CAD/CAM milling machines (n=154) and 3D printers (n=49). Although intraoral scanners and CAD/CAM milling machines were used for all types of restorations, the focus was on smaller fixed restorations. Overall, digitization was viewed positively by 58% of respondents, although some aspects of digitization, such as telemedicine or social media presence, were viewed critically. A total of 341 dentists plan to digitize their practice within the next 10 years, while 201 dentists do not plan to digitize at all.
Conclusions: In Germany, digitalization has already found its way into many dental practices. For example, digital patient administration and digital dental radiography are already routine. Even if digital treatment concepts are not yet standard in dentistry, there is a trend towards digitalization.