This thesis traces the development of materials used for denture baseplates and suggests areas for concentrating future research projects. Due to the falling decay rates in many developed countries, the provision of partial rather than full dentures is becoming increasingly common and this places new demands on the baseplate materials. An extensive bibliography has been included which traces the history of the denture materials, their advantages and disadvantages. Despite the fact that it was introduced in the mid 1930s, poly(methyl methacrylate) still remains the material of choice mainly due to low cost and ease of production. However, the use of poly(methyl methacrylate) is limited by it's mechanical properties, and the development of new materials with more suitable characteristics is considered. Traditionally denture teeth have been poorly investigated despite the fact that clinically many dentures fail due to the poor performance of the denture teeth, particularly the excessive wear apparent on many of the occlusal surfaces. By studying the microstructure of natural teeth in detail, a closer understanding of the ways in which they fulfil their functions has been achieved. Scanning Electron Microscopy of the enamel has revealed closely packed crystals arranged in a keyhole configuration whilst a new model has been proposed for the structure of dentine. This new model shows that the material is arranged in basic structural units of approximately 10-20nm across, which coalesce to form a continuous mineral phase. These structures would be consistent with the role of enamel as the protective abrasion resistant layer and with the dentine as the shock absorber, and proposals have been put forward for improving the artificial replacements.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:638166 |
| Date | January 1998 |
| Creators | Meads, J. E. |
| Publisher | Swansea University |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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