Purpose: To evaluate the wear of three different modified ceramics along with a conventional porcelain and the wear of opposing enamel at initial wear cycle on a two-body and a three-body wear simulation.
Materials and methods: Modified ceramics used in this study included a low fusing/low crystal porcelain (Finesse), a high fusing/low crystal porcelain (Softspar), and a heat-pressable ceramic (IPS Empress). A conventional porcelain (Ceramco II) was used as the control material. Hemispherical shaped ceramic styli (1/8 inch in diameter) made of respective materials were fabricated according to the manufacturers' directions. Proximal surfaces of non-carious human molars were ground flat within the enamel with a silicon carbide paper to 600 grit with copious irrigation. They were perpendicularly opposed to each other with or without intermediate material as a food bolus and subjected to in vitro wear test by a UAB wear simulator. A 75.6 N load was applied vertically onto the surface at 1.2 Hz. The surface was duplicated after respective wear cycles. Seven specimens were tested for each group of both simulations.
Results: The enamel wear loss when opposing the modified ceramics was less than the Ceramco II control which exhibited the greatest values. The IPS Empress material showed the least amount of wear among them. Statistically significant differences were seen between the IPS Empress and the Ceramco II for every cycle interval evaluated (ANOVA, P < 0.05). Although the enamel wear loss when opposing the IPS Empress was significantly less (ANOVA, P < 0.05) than the others until 20,000 wear cycles, no significant differences were found among the modified ceramics at the end of 50,000 wear cycles. The concentric wear patterns were already prominent at 5,000 wear cycles on two-body wear, however, the wear facet of the three-body wear was smaller (the wear depth of 0-5 microm) than the two-body wear test, as it was quite similar to the one of the two-body wear test at 100 wear cycles. On the other hand, although no statistically significant differences were found among the three modified ceramics and between the conventional porcelain and the modified ceramics at every wear cycle, the high values of the Finesse since 10,000 wear cycles were probably due to the mechanical properties of this porcelain. Moreover, on the surface of the ceramic styli at the end of 50,000 wear cycles, the glaze layer on the contact area had not yet worn off.