The development of dental informatics and dental information technology in China: A systematic study

Background/purpose Dental informatics (DI) is a new emerging interdiscipline for medical informatics (MI) and general dentistry, and dental information technology (d-IT) is a parallel research field. The purpose of this study was to investigate the current situation of DI and d-IT in China, evaluate the achievements, analyze the weakness, and anticipate the future development. Materials and methods Publications about DI and d-IT in English and Chinese journals by international and Chinese researchers were searched through literature reviews. The funds supporting DI and d-IT in China were manually searched. DI and d-IT education in China was analyzed by website search and telephone interview. Results The investigation indicated that China started research in DI and d-IT fields from the late 1970s, but the development has become more rapid in the last 10 years. Both Chinese and international publications have increased sharply within the last decade. The Chinese government kept a stable increasing investment in DI and d-IT scientific projects and Chinese researchers made influential achievements in certain fields of DI and d-IT, such as computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD-CAM) development and application, computer-assisted manufacture of facial prosthesis, and three-dimensional (3D)-assisted dental education. Conclusion DI and d-IT have developed rapidly in China in recent years. However, there are some problems which remain to be resolved.