Gloss and Surface Roughness of Anterior Pediatric Zirconia Crowns

The purpose of this study was to determine gloss and surface roughness (Ra) of pediatric anterior zirconia crowns.

Gloss of labial and lingual surfaces of pediatric anterior zirconia crowns from three manufacturers was measured on 20 specimens using a small area gloss meter on each. Ra (μm) was measured using a contact-type surface profilometer. Data were evaluated by analysis of variance and pair-wise comparison at the 0.05 level of significance.

There were statistically significant interactions between surface location and crown type for both gloss and Ra scores. NuSmile had higher mean gloss scores and lower mean Ra scores than both Kinder Krowns and EZCrowns. Kinder Krowns showed lower mean gloss scores and higher Ra scores than other crown groups.

Among all crowns, there was a trend of higher mean gloss paired with lower mean surface roughness, and lower mean gloss paired with higher mean Ra. Hand smoothed followed by mechanically polished zirconia crowns (NuSmile) displayed the highest mean gloss and lowest mean Ra compared to hybrid polishedglazed zirconia crowns (Kinder Krowns, EZCrowns). Of the hybrid polished-glazed zirconia crowns, Kinder Krowns displayed the lowest mean gloss and highest mean Ra.