EFFECT OF CASTING PROCEDURE ON SCREW LOOSENING OF UCLA ABUTMENT IN TWO IMPLANT-ABUTMENT CONNECTION SYSTEMS

Abstract

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM: The cast abutment has advantages of overcoming angulation problem and esthetic problem. However, when a gold-machined UCLA abutment undergoes casting, the abutment surfaces in contact with the implant may change. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the detorque values of prefabricated machined abutments with gold-premachined cast-on UCLA abutments before and after casting in two types of internal implant-abutment connection systems: (1) internal hexagonal joint, (2) internal octagonal joint. Furthermore, the detorque values of two implant-abutment connection systems were compared. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty internal hexagonal implants with an 11-degree taper and twenty internal octagonal implants with an 8-degree taper were acquired. Ten prefabricated titanium abutments and ten gold-premachined UCLA abutments were used for each systems. Each abutment was torqued to 30 N㎝ according to the manufacturer's instructions and detorque value was recorded. The detorque values were measured once more, after casting with gold alloy for UCLA abutment, and preparation for titanium abutments. Group means were calculated and compared using independent t-test and paired t-test (=0.05). RESULTS: The results were as follows: 1. The detorque values between titanium abutments and UCLA-type abutments showed significant differences in internal octagonal implants (P<0.05), not in internal hexagonal implants (P>0.05). 2. In comparison of internal hexagonal and octagonal implants, the detorque values of titanium abutments had significant differences between two connection systems on the initial analysis (P<0.05), not on the second analysis (P>0.05) and the detorque values of UCLA-type abutments were not significantly different between two connection systems (P>0.05). 3. The detorque values of titanium abutments and UCLA-type abutments decreased significantly on the second analysis than the initial analysis in internal hexagonal implants (P<0.05), not in internal octagonal implants (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: Casting procedures of UCLA-type abutments had no significant effect on screw loosening in internal implant-abutment connection systems, and UCLA-type abutments showed higher detorque values than titanium abutments in internal octagonal implants.