The Surface Roughness of Contemporary Indirect CAD/CAM Restorative Materials That Are Glazed and Chair-Side-Finished/Polished

Abstract

The surface roughness (Ra) of indirect computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM)-fabricated dental restorations is crucial for their long-term durability. This study intended to evaluate the Ra of five different types of contemporary indirect CAD/CAM restorative materials with varying compositions that were glazed and finished/polished. A total of 75 specimens, disc-shaped (10 mm × 2 mm), were obtained from five materials (n = 15) (Tetric CAD, IPS e.max CAD, IPS e.max ZirCAD, CELTRA Duo, and Vita Enamic) and fabricated by CAD/CAM. One of the two surfaces for each specimen was subjected to glazing, while the other surface was subjected to finishing/polishing. The Ra of the two surfaces in micrometers (μm) was evaluated using a Profilometer, while the surface topography was examined using a scanning electron microscope. Using SPSS, the Kruskal–Wallis, post hoc Conover, and Mann–Whitney tests were used to statistically evaluate the data. A comparison of the Ra for the finished/polished surfaces of the five test materials showed significant differences (p p p p p p < 0.0001). Significant variations in the surface roughness (Ra) were exhibited between the finished/polished and glazed surfaces of the five test materials. Hybrid ceramics showed the highest Ra values for the finished/polished surfaces, and zirconia exhibited the highest Ra values among the glazed surfaces among the tested materials. The Ra values of either finished/polished or glazed surfaces of the test materials were within the clinically acceptable range (0.2–0.5 μm), except for the glazed surface of the zirconia ceramics (0.84 μm).

Keywords

• surface roughness
• CAD/CAM
• indirect restorative materials
• finishing and polishing
• glazing
• dental ceramics