A vitreous carbon-polymethacrylate composite for dental implants.

A STUDY HAS BEEN CARRIED OUT ON THE STRUCTURE AND SURFACE TEXTure of a new dental implant material composed of vitreous carbon balloons (3 wt % or 6 wt %) and poly(methyl methacrylate). Tooth replica implants using this material had been successfully placed in baboons, and histologic study revealed normal alveolar bone and a peri-implant membrane with the connective tissue fibers oriented in a horizontal direction. Square wafers (10 mm X 10 mm X 1 mm) were studied, with the surface sandblasted in one-half of the specimens. Light microscopy revealed that in the 3% carbon specimens, the vitreous carbon micro-balloons were evenly spaced and often appeared to be fragmented within their spaces. S.E.M. studies revealed a finely porous surface with numerous large craters. Microballoons were often seen within the craters in the nonsandblasted specimens.