Ceramic dental implant

Abstract

A dental implant is disclosed comprising an anchoring part for anchoring within a bone and comprising a mounting part for receiving a prosthetic build-up construction, wherein the anchoring part and the mounting part are configured integrally of a material comprising zirconia, wherein at least the anchoring part is treated at its outer surface at least partially by a subtractive, removing process, such as by sand blasting or is provided with a coating which facilitates an ossification.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application is a continuation application of copending international patent application PCT / EP02 / 13187 filed on Nov. 23, 2002 claiming priority of German patent application 101 59 683.9.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]The invention relates to a dental implant comprising an anchoring part for anchoring within the bone and comprising a mounting part for receiving an element to be attached, such as an abutment or a crown, a bridge or a prosthesis construction.[0003]Dental implants have been successfully used since more than 10 years. The major part of the dental implants currently used consist of titanium, since titanium has a sufficiently low elastic modulus and also has a relatively large strength. In addition, it is of particular importance that when using titanium as an implant material a safe integrating or interlocking osteogenesis can be reached when the surface is suitably treated (e.g. roughened by sand blasting). This means that the titanium im...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The invention is a dental implant that offers high mechanical stability, a natural-looking color, and a safe ossification process. It is made of ceramic and has an anchoring part for anchoring in the bone and a mounting part for attaching dental elements. The material is treated at its outer surface to facilitate ossification. The implant can be used in a one-part design and can be directly attached to adjacent teeth or prosthetic parts. The invention also provides a process for making the dental implant. The technical effects of the invention include improved mechanical stability, natural-looking color, and safe ossification process.

Problems solved by technology

Herein a drawback is the necessary secondary operation at the end of the primary healing phase for allowing a subsequent application of a mounting part, and thereon the desired prosthesis or crown.

Such a system consisting of two-part implants having an anchoring part and a mounting part, an abutment and a prosthesis applied thereon offers a good matching to the geometric situation for different indications, however, generally the multitude of the components used is detrimental for the mechanical stability of the total system.

However, a screw connection between metal (anchoring part of titanium) and ceramic (mounting part) cannot be realized, inter alia, due to the differences in the coefficients of thermal expansion.

By contrast, up to now anchoring parts made of ceramic could not pervade, since these usually do not have the necessary mechanical stability or do not provide safe ossification.

However, the application of zirconia ceramic as a material for making the anchoring part of an implant seems not possible, since a sufficient mechanical stability of the zirconia ceramic is necessary, this requiring a highly dense preparation, practically without any porosity to be measured, this simultaneously leading to a clean cut extremely hard surface.

Such a material is bio-inert, so that no interlocking osteogenesis is to be expected, this is why this material is not regarded to be suitable for the preparation of an anchoring part of an implant.

Although herein some kind of advantages with respect to the aesthetic of zirconia ceramic and possibly with respect to a simplified preparation for the design of the supraconstruction is made possible, however also this implant construction bears the basic disadvantages that rest with multiple-part implant constructions.

Namely, since the implant itself consists of titanium, the same problems as before result within the bonding region between the implant and the supraconstruction made of zirconia ceramic.

However, the known system still suffers from the drawbacks inherent with metal implants.

However, also this implant does not guarantee a safe ossification within the bone after implantation.

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