Artificial Teeth

Requirements:

1-The most important requirement of artificial teeth is good

appearance. They should, ideally, be indistinguishable from
natural teeth in shape, colour and translucency. Good matching
often requires that the shade and translucency of the artificial
tooth should vary from the tip of the crown to the gingival area.

2-There should be good attachment between the artificial teeth

and the denture base. The introduction of artificial teeth into
the base should not adversely affect the base material. That is,
the artificial tooth and base materials should be compatible .

3-It is an advantage for the artificial teeth to be of low density

in order that they do not increase the weight of the denture
unduly.

4-The artificial teeth should be strong and tough in order to

resist fracture.

5-They should be hard enough to resist abrasive forces in the

mouth and during cleaning, but should allow grinding with a
dental bur so that adjustments to the occlusion can be made by

the dentist at the chairside.

Available materials

The two materials which are commonly used for the production
of artificial teeth are acrylic resins and porcelain.

Acrylic resins

Acrylic resin artificial teeth are produced in reusable metal

moulds using either the dough moulding technique, described
for denture base construction, or by injection moulding in
which the acrylic powder is softened by heating and forced into
the mould under pressure.

The resins used are highly cross-linked in order to produce

artificial teeth which are resistant to crazing. The main
difference between the materials and those used for denture
base construction is the incorporation of tooth-coloured
pigments rather than pink ones.

Porcelain

Artificial porcelain teeth are produced to standard shapes and

sizes by using moulds which are approximately 30% larger than
required, in order to allow for shrinkage during firing. Small
holes or metal pins are incorporated in the base of the
porcelain teeth during their production. These are used to give
mechanical attachment to the denture base.
Properties

Both acrylic and porcelain teeth can be made to give a realistic

appearance. The slightly greater translucency and depth of
colour achieved with porcelain possibly gives this material a
slight advantage in terms of aesthetics. Both materials are
produced to a variety of shapes, sizes, colours and shades
which enable selection of teeth to suit most individuals.

One aspect of porcelain teeth which is sometimes unpopular

with patients is the ‘clicking’ sound which is made when two
porcelain teeth come into contact.

Attachment of the teeth to the base is through a chemical

union in the case of acrylic teeth and by mechanical retention
for porcelain teeth. For both materials, adequate bonding is
achieved only if all traces of wax from the trial denture are
removed from the teeth during the ‘boiling out’ stage.

Acrylic resin teeth are, naturally, more compatible with the

denture base than porcelain teeth. There is a serious mismatch
in coefficient of thermal expansion and modulus of elasticity
between porcelain and acrylic resin. This may lead to crazing
and cracking of the denture base in the region around the base
of the porcelain teeth.
Porcelain has a density value about twice that of acrylic resin
and dentures constructed with porcelain teeth are much
heavier.

Porcelain is brittle and teeth constructed from this material are

more likely to chip and fracture than acrylic teeth.

There is a vast difference in hardness between acrylic resin and

porcelain. Acrylic teeth are more likely to suffer abrasion than
porcelain teeth, although this does not constitute a serious
problem in more than a few rare cases. When excessive wear is
evident on acrylic denture teeth, special environmental factors
or patient habits are often responsible. For example, working in
a dusty or gritty environment may accelerate wear if particles
of grit are ground between teeth of an upper and lower
denture. Likewise the use of a very abrasive material, such as
pumice, for cleaning dentures may result in marked abrasion.

The extreme hardness of porcelain is a disadvantage when

adjustments, requiring grinding of teeth, are necessary. With
acrylic teeth, such adjustments are carried out quite simply. For
porcelain teeth however, the process is difficult and results in
the glaze being removed from the surface of the porcelain.
It is a clinical impression that porcelain teeth transmit higher
forces to the supporting soft tissues than acrylic teeth. This is a
function of the greater modulus of elasticity of porcelain. The
difficulties of grinding porcelain teeth combined with their
tendency to transmit a greater force to the underlying tissues
dictates the type of clinical case for which they can be used.
They should not be used where there is diminished
interocclusal distance or when there is poor ridge support.

One advantage of ceramic materials used in various aspects of

medicine and dentistry is their perceived biocompatibility. This
is related to their structure and lack of chemical reactivity
under normal conditions.

The vast majority of artificial teeth used for denture

construction are now of the acrylic type. Acceptable
appearance coupled with convenient handling, greater
toughness and compatibility with the acrylic denture base give
the acrylic resins an advantage over the alternative porcelain
materials.