[An expert system for designing removable partial dentures. Part II. The role of the database constructed with clinical cases].

In developing the expert system for designing removable partial dentures, the construction and enlargement of data base are indispensable. The object of this study was to report on the process of constructing the clinical data base and its function within the expert system. The data base in the system consisted of three main parts. They are the knowledge data base obtained from human experts and text books, the clinical fact data base collected from the oral examination or from the clinical experiments and the graphic data base for graphic outputs. Following effects were suggested by using above mentioned data bases. 1) By using data bases, the execution of the expert system program became faster and more efficient. 2) The design suggested by the expert system is more likely to lead to reasonable and practical ones. 3) Many denture designs and data of clinical cases would be stored and readily used as references for practical and educational purposes.