Dental Biomaterials I - Lecture 1: Introduction

Dental Biomaterials I - Lecture 1: Introduction

• Dental biomaterials are materials used in dental treatment.
• Dentistry is the science of oral care, dealing with pain relief, disease prevention and treatment, maintaining masticatory efficiency, restoring oral aesthetics.
• The mouth consists of soft tissues (tongue, lips, cheeks, gingiva, soft palate) and hard tissues (bone – maxilla, mandible, hard palate - and teeth).
• Teeth have a crown (1/3 of length, enamel, dentin, pulp), and a root (2/3 of length, pulp). Enamel is the hardest tissue.
• Tooth decay (dental caries) is a destructive disease of tooth structure.
• Dental treatment includes prevention, restorative, and prosthetic care.
• Preventive treatment includes patient education (brushing, flossing, check-ups), fluoride therapy, and pit and fissure sealants.
• Restorative treatment involves removing decay and filling the cavity with a suitable material (amalgam, composite restoration).
• Endodontic treatment (RCT) is necessary if decay reaches the pulp.
• Prosthetic treatment involves replacing missing teeth with artificial replacements (dental implants, bridges, dentures – partial and complete).
• Success of treatment depends on selecting and manipulating materials appropriately.
• Biomaterials are any natural or synthetic material interacting with living tissue or fluids.
• Dental materials can be classified by their use: preventive (pit and fissure sealants, fluoride therapy), restorative (dental amalgam, composite ceramics), prosthetic (impression materials, gypsum products, investment materials, dental waxes).
• Four categories of dental biomaterials include metals, ceramics, composites, and polymers.

Important Terms

• Ridge: the bony part remaining after tooth extraction.
• Dentulous ridge: a ridge with complete teeth.
• Edentulous ridge: a ridge without teeth.
• Partially edentulous ridge: a ridge with some teeth missing.

Prosthesis

• A prosthesis is an artificial replacement of a missing part of the body, either fixed or removable. Fixed prosthetics remain permanently cemented (e.g., inlay, onlay, crown, bridge). Removable prosthetics can be inserted and removed (e.g., partial and complete dentures).