RESUMEN
OBJECTIVES: To investigate the accuracy and reliability of deep learning in automatic graft material segmentation after maxillary sinus augmentation (SA) from cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) images. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred paired CBCT scans (a preoperative scan and a postoperative scan) were collected and randomly allocated to training (n = 82) and testing (n = 18) subsets. The ground truths of graft materials were labeled by three observers together (two experienced surgeons and a computer engineer). A deep learning model including a 3D V-Net and a 3D Attention V-Net was developed. The overall performance of the model was assessed through the testing data set. The comparative accuracy and inference time consumption of the model-driven and manual segmentation (by two surgeons with 3 years of experience in dental implant surgery) were conducted on 10 CBCT scans from the test samples. RESULTS: The deep learning model had a Dice coefficient (Dice) of 90.36 ± 2.53%, a 95% Hausdorff distance (HD) of 1.59 ± 0.82 mm, and an average surface distance (ASD) of 0.38 ± 0.11 mm. The proposed model only needed 7.2 s, while the surgeon took 19.15 min on average to complete a segmentation task. The overall performances of the model were significantly superior to those of surgeons. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed deep learning model yielded a more accurate and efficient performance of automatic segmentation of graft material after SA than that of the two surgeons. The proposed model could facilitate a powerful system for volumetric change evaluation, dental implant planning, and digital dentistry.