Antagonist wear of three CAD/CAM anatomic contour zirconia ceramics.

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

Little clinical information exists on the antagonist wear of anatomic contour zirconia crowns.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this in vitro study was to evaluate the 2-body wear of antagonists for 3 computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) anatomic contour zirconia ceramics and veneering porcelain when opposing natural human enamel.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Zirkonzahn Y-TZP (polished zirconia, zirconia with staining, zirconia with staining and glazing), Acucera Y-TZP, Wieland Y-TZP, and Noritake feldspathic ceramic were tested (6 groups). Eight disk-shaped specimens 15 mm in diameter and 5 mm thick were prepared for each group. Forty-eight specimens were fabricated for a wear test against maxillary premolars without caries or previous restorations with 240 000 masticatory cycles in a masticatory simulator. Before the experiment, the surface roughness of each ceramic was measured with a nanosurface 3-dimensional (3D) optical profiler. The surface of the specimens was observed at 50× and 1000× magnification with a field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) before and after the experiment. The data obtained were statistically analyzed by 1-way ANOVA and the Tukey test for post hoc analysis (α=.05).

RESULTS

The SEM observations of each group revealed fine bubbles and porous surfaces in the Noritake feldspathic ceramic group, whereas the polished Zirkonzahn Y-TZP group, Acucera Y-TZP group, and Wieland Y-TZP group had smooth surfaces. The surface roughness of Zirkonzahn Y-TZP after staining and glazing was significantly greater than that of any other groups (P<.01). The tooth opposing the polished Zirkonzahn Y-TZP group demonstrated the least wear (1.11 ± 0.51 mm³), while Zirkonzahn Y-TZP with staining and glazing produced the greatest enamel wear (3.07 ± 0.98 mm³) among the zirconia groups. The Noritake feldspathic ceramic group showed significantly more antagonistic tooth wear than other groups (P<.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The antagonist wear of 3 CAD/CAM anatomic contour zirconia ceramics was significantly less than the Noritake veneering ceramic because the surface character of Y-TZP is relatively uniform and homogeneous. Zirkonzahn Y-TZP with staining and glazing was significantly more abrasive than the other zirconia specimens tested. However, it was less abrasive than the Noritake veneering ceramic.