Compressive and Tensile Zones in the Cement Interface of Full Crowns: A Technical Note on the Concept of Resistance

PURPOSE: The objectives of the study were: 1) to map the stresses acting on the cement interface of crown and abutment analogs during loading; and 2) to provide a theoretical basis for the hypothesis that resistance to lateral dislodgment is a function of the distribution of compressive force vectors acting on the cement lute. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Three-dimensional finite element (FE) meshes of crown and abutment analogs were constructed and loaded in a direction perpendicular to the axes of symmetry of the abutments. Three parameters were investigated: taper (10 degrees and 20 degrees of convergence), abutment substrate (Ni-Cr alloy and dentin), and type of cement (zinc oxide eugenol, zinc phosphate, glass ionomer, and composite resin). The tensile and compressive components of the resulting force systems were plotted along two axes (z: parallel to the axis of symmetry of the crown/abutment complex; and y: perpendicular to z, i.e., parallel to the direction of loading). Von Mises stresses were also generated. RESULTS: First, it was shown that the restoration's axis of rotation was located inside the abutment cone and was perpendicular to and intersected the axis of symmetry of the crown/abutment complex. Second, stress distribution was dependent on the three parameters investigated. Varying taper led to shifts due mainly to alterations in specimen geometry, whereas the abutment substrate and the cement type had a bearing on the level of the axis of rotation. The smaller the modulus of elasticity of the abutment substrate or the cement lute, the farther apical the location of the axis of rotation. CONCLUSIONS: Conventional schemes for explaining crown dislodgment in which the restoration rotates around an axis located at the preparation margin should be reassessed. The results of the FE analysis are compatible with the hypothesis that resistance to lateral dislodgment is a function of the distribution of compressive force vectors acting on the cement interface.