Strength and marginal fit of full and partial porcelain crowns on Brånemark implants

The aim of the present study was to evaluate strength and marginal fit of different designed single crowns screwed on titanium implants (Brånemark) without the usage of any abutment. Seven test groups with 10 specimens each (standardized maxillary central incisor crowns) were fabricated of Empress (staining/veneering technique), metal-based Empress (staining/veneering technique), metal-based In-Ceram and metal ceramic (with/without cervical porcelain margin). The marginal fit of 5 specimens of each group was evaluated (SEM-Analysis) and the crowns were incisally loaded at a 30 degrees angle in a Zwick testing machine until fracture. The 5 remaining specimens underwent a marginal evaluation (SEM-analyses) before and after thermo-mechanical stressing (tms) and were loaded in the Zwick testing machine as well. All Empress ceramic crowns without metal reinforcement fractured during fixing procedure on the implant (32 N cm). The gap medians of the fixed crowns ranged from 11 microns (metal ceramic crowns) to 34 microns (metal ceramic crowns with porcelain margin). No significant differences in gap width were observed before and after tms. In the strength analyses screw-binding forces (SBF) of about 135 N were registered in all test groups. Fracture failure forces (FFF) reached up to 280 N. The indication of the crown designs presented in this study is limited in clinical use because of low stability and esthetics.