Damped oscillation analysis of natural and artificial periodontal membranes.

The mechanical mobility of human teeth was studied by using a wave data treatment system with an accelerometer attached to a personal computer. The healthy teeth in different generations of men and women, who ranged in age from their teens to their forties, showed similar damped oscillation patterns. The spring constant and coefficient of viscous damping were estimated by using a viscoelastic model of damped oscillation with 1 degree of freedom. The coefficient of viscous damping increased dramatically with increases in the damping factor, whereas the spring constant scarcely varied. Silicone membranes were used as model periodontal membranes. The coefficient of viscous damping decreased with increases in silicone membrane thickness. Collagen membranes, which are expected to function as artificial periodontal membranes, were adhered to the model tooth by drying collagen gel and fixed with apatite-collagen composites. The collagen membranes showed damped oscillation wave patterns similar to those of human periodontal membranes.