Influence of cyclic loading on the fracture toughness and load bearing capacities of all-ceramic crowns

Abstract

Zirconia-based ceramic crowns are strong, mechanically reliable and resist loading fatigue over time, according to research from China. Crowns made entirely from ceramics are frequently used as tooth replacements, but repeated stresses can cause cracks to propagate and sometimes lead to total failure of the crown. Dong-Sheng Zhang at Shanghai University and co-workers compared the impact of cyclic loading on two leading types of ceramic crown: one is made from hot-press lithium disilicate and the other from zirconia core materials. The researchers subjected the crowns to two million loading cycles of different magnitudes and measured the changes in the crowns' elasticity, hardness and fracture toughness over time. They found that cyclic loading had no significant influence on zirconia crowns, but the lithium-based crowns had a markedly lower load-bearing capacity.

Keywords

dental ceramics / fatigue loading / fracture toughness / load-bearing capacity

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