No abstract

All-ceramic crowns made of leucite-based heat-pressed ceramics are widely used to restore non-vital teeth in conjunction with various post and core materials. However, as some light passes through the ceramic, the colour of the abutment substrate can negatively affect the final aesthetic appearance of the all-ceramic crown. In this study, we made background specimens simulating gold-alloy cast posts and other simulating porcelain veneered cast posts, overlaid different thickness of heat-pressed ceramic on these background specimens, and measured the shifts in colour. We found that, when the background specimen was a gold alloy, the background colour had an effect on the apparent colour, unless the ceramic was more than 1.6 mm thick. When the background specimen was porcelain veneered, the background colour had no evident effect, even when the ceramic was not very thick. Therefore, when making a restoration using a leucite-based heat-pressed ceramic crown, it is advisable to use tooth-coloured materials such as a porcelain veneered cast post, if you will not be able to make the ceramic more than 1.6 mm thick.

The concept of reducing nonaxial loading of dental implants has been widely regarded as the standard procedure. The aim of this study was to reveal the biomechanical stress distribution in supporting bone around an implant and a natural tooth under chewing function. Three-dimensional finite element models of the mandibular first molar and the titanium implant both with the mandible in the molar region were constructed. The directions of displacement constraints were determined according to the angles of the closing pathways of chopping type and grinding type chewing patterns. The tooth model showed smooth stress distribution in the supporting bone with low stress concentration around the neck of the tooth. The implant model showed stress concentration in the supporting bone around the neck of the implant, especially in the buccal area. The grinding type model of the implant showed higher tensile stress concentration than the chopping type model at the lingual neck of the implant. The results of this study suggested the importance of considering occlusion under chewing function for understanding the biomechanics of oral implants.

A greater understanding of the contribution of genetic factors could have beneficial uses, including enhanced accuracy of sleep bruxism diagnosis, management of sleep bruxism, and enhanced estimation of the prognosis for patients suffering from sleep bruxism. In addition, it could be also important to adequately evaluate the environmental factors in patients with sleep bruxism.