Zirconium Dental Implants

1 Zirconium Dental Implants

Dental implants made of bio ceramics - zirconium

With the development of the an zirconium implant system, in 2005, the brand Ziterion broke new grounds in dental implantology. For the first time a dental implant system, considering the requirements of ceramics was developed in the view of bio capability.

Besides the advantages of metal free implants , the system offers variability, simplicity and lucidity.

The Zit Implant System consists of ceramic material zirconium, which is most suitable for highest aesthetic demands.

The special zit thread design HSD (high stability design) with its micro-roughened surface assures a high primary and secondary stability for all zit Implants.

The abutment part was designed identically for all implants. Thus, the application of impression caps and laboratory analogues is made possible for standardized prosthetics on trans-gingival and sub-gingival zit Implants. The zit instrument kit, with ceramic drills, is restricted to the essentials, setting new standards with regard to design, user-orientation, as well as to cost efficiency and utility.

All instruments and laboratory components suitable for the trans-gingival system can also be applied with the sub-gingival system. Only one insertion instrument is required for all implants. Due to the unique and lucid product range, logistic expenditure as well as the costs for dental implant treatments with zirconium Implants in surgery are reduced considerably.

Arguments in favour of the application of zirconium Implants

Simple, quick and patient-oriented implant therapy
Time and cost saving
Standard therapy with titanium implants
High end aesthetic therapy with ceramic implants
Perfect, well suited and lucid product range

Questions about Zirconium Dental Implants

Here are some standard answers to a number of questions that people have in relation to the use of zirconium.

Is Zirconium radioactive?

“Radioactive burden resulting from zirconia implants” (Article in German)

Fischer-Brandies E, Pratzel H, Wendt T.

Klinik und Poliklinik fur Kieferchirurgie der Universitat Munchen.

Due to its mechanical properties zirconia is an interesting implantation material. However, it may contain a certain amount of radioactive isotopes. The measurement of alpha-emission reveals varying amounts of radiation. As a result, a declaration of radioactivity should be required for zirconia implants and only zirconia with low emission levels should be used for implantation purposes.

PMID: 1817864 (PubMed)

“Zirconia Ceramics as Biomaterials – Radioactivity Issues”

Background

Zirconium compounds are refined from naturally occurring ores, notably zircon, and usually contain trace amounts of other elements depending upon the source of the original ore.

In particular, zirconia typically contains trace amounts of radionuclide of the actinide series such as 226Ra and 228Th.

As a consequence there have been some concerns about the use of zirconium ceramics as implant materials.

The Radioactivity of Zirconium Biomaterials

However, the radioactivity of zirconia is negligible.

For example, the radiation emitted by a 3 mol% Y2O3-ZrO2 powder was the same order of magnitude as alumina powder, both of which were several orders of magnitude less than that typically measured for water, milk, vegetables and meat (in Europe).

The radioactivity of Y-TZP zirconia femoral heads were shown to be similar to that of alumina and cobalt-chrome alloy femoral heads accepted for human implantation.

The radiation dose of each material was well below European radiation limits specified for general external exposure of the human body and also for local internal exposure of organs and tissue, and was no more than the ambient radiation of the surroundings.

The Radioactivity of Commercially Available Zirconia Powders Similarly, the radiation levels of several commercially-available zirconia powders (Nilcra Ceramics, Melbourne, Australia) measured by the Australian Radiation Laboratory were found to be minimal and well below acceptable limits.

The Radiation Health Committee of the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia consider that magnesia partially stabilised zirconia femoral heads made from these powders would pose very little hazard to surrounding tissue.

Radiation Absorption

In a dense ceramic, almost all the radiation will be absorbed within the bulk of the material. Any external radiation could come only from radionuclides at the surface in the case of a-emission, or from radionuclides in the first few millimetres in the case of b-emission.

Furthermore, in the case of artificial hip joints, any radiation from the femoral head will be absorbed mostly by the ultra high molecular weight polyethylene acetabular cup or the metal femoral stem.

The radiation risk of zirconia ceramics is negligible and certainly no more than that of alumina.

Primary author: Dr. Owen Standard. Source: Abstracted from Ph.D Thesis “Application of Transformation-Toughened Zirconia Ceramics as Bioceramics”, University of New South Wales, Australia, 1995.