Preparation for being fastened on a natural tooth part or tooth and corresponding fastening method

• US 20040038178A1
• Filed: 04/17/2003
• Published: 02/26/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Woodwelding AG
• Original Assignee: Woodwelding AG
• Inventors: Torriani, Laurent, Aeschlimann, Marcel, Mayer, Jorg
• Granted Patent: US 6,955,540 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 433/169
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 13/30 Fastening of peg-teeth in the mouth
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 5/00 Filling or capping teeth
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 5/30 Securing inlays, onlays or crowns
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 5/50 Implements for filling root canals; Methods or instruments for medication of tooth nerve channels
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 5/70 Tooth crowns; Making thereof
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 5/73 Composite crowns
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/30065 thermoplastic, i.e. softening or fusing when heated, and hardening and becoming rigid again when cooled
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/4683 by applying ultrasonic vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2210/0071 thermoplastic
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 6/30 Compositions for temporarily or permanently fixing teeth or palates, e.g. primers for dental adhesives
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 6/887 Compounds obtained by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 6/891 Compounds obtained otherwise than by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds

Abstract

A preparation (10, 11,12,13) to be fixed to a natural tooth part or tooth, in particular for the replacement of a load-bearing tooth part, is for example a filling for a drilled-out tooth (1), a crown, bridge or prosthesis to be placed on a tooth stub, or a tooth pin to be fixed in a tooth root for fastening an artificial tooth, a bridge or a prosthesis. The preparation has surface regions which consist of a material with thermoplastic properties. The preparation (10, 11, 12,13) is designed in a manner such that it has oscillation properties with such low damping losses that for a liquefaction of the material with thermoplastic properties by way of oscillations there are local stress concentrations required, and in a manner such that such stress concentrations only occur in the region of the preparation surface. The preparation is positioned on a suitably prepared natural tooth part in a manner such that the material with the thermoplastic properties is in contact or may be brought into contact with the dentin surface and/or enamel surface. The preparation is then made to mechanically oscillate and is simultaneously pressed against the natural tooth part, whereby the material with the thermoplastic properties is at least partly liquefied and brought into intimate contact with the dentin or enamel surface in a manner such that after solidification it forms a positive fit and/or material fit connection. Teeth restored with such preparations have a high stability and a long life, which in particular is attributed to the fact that the thermoplastic material, in contrast to cements used for the same purpose, shrinks less and has the ability to relieve internal stress by creeping.

Claims

1. A preparation (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17) to be fixed on a natural tooth part or tooth, in particular for replacement of a load-bearing tooth part, said preparation being positionable in the natural tooth part or on the natural tooth part or tooth and comprising:

at least one region (10.2, 12.2, 14.2, 15.2, 16.2, 17.2) or one part (11.2) of a material with thermoplastic properties, the at least one region forming at least part of the preparation surface and the at least one part being positionable to form at least part of the preparation surface,

wherein the preparation has oscillation properties with damping losses which are so small that local stress concentrations are required for liquefying the material by oscillation, and

wherein the preparation is designed in a manner such that the stress concentrations only occur in the region of the preparation surface.

2. The preparation (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17) according to claim 1, wherein the material with thermoplastic properties has a modulus of elasticity which is larger than 0.5 Gpa.

3. The preparation (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17) according to claim 2, wherein the material with thermoplastic properties is a thermoplastic material or a composite material with a thermoplastic component.

4. The preparation (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17) according to claim 3, wherein the thermoplastic material or the thermoplastic component is a polyolefin, a polyacrylate, a polymetacrylate, a polyurethane, a polycarbonate, a polyamide, a polyester, a polysulphone, a polyarylketone, a polyimide, a polyphenyl sulphide, a liquid crystal polymer, a polyacetal, a halogenated polymer, in particular a halogenated polyolefin, a polyphenylene sulphide, a polysulphone, a polyether or a corresponding copolymer or mixture of at least two of said polymers.

5. The preparation according to claim 1, wherein the material with thermoplastic properties is a thermoplast with admixtures of fibres, whiskers, particles, agents acting antiseptically or in a denaturising manner, or x-ray absorbing constituents.

6. The preparation according to claim 1, wherein the material with thermoplastic properties comprises an active component reacting with the surface of the natural tooth part or with a primer deposited thereon.

7. The preparation (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17) according to claim 1, wherein the preparation further comprises a further region (10.1, 12.1, 14.1, 15.1, 16.1, 17.1) or part (11.1) of a metallic or ceramic material, of a polymer or of a composite material.

8. The preparation (10, 11, 12, 13, 41) according to claim 1, wherein the preparation has the shape of a tooth filling to be fixed in a tooth opening (2), or the shape of an element (41) to be fixed to a tooth (40).

9. The preparation (10, 11, 12) according to claim 7, wherein the preparation further comprises a preparation body (10.1, 11.1, 12.1) and a contact layer (10.2, 12.2) arranged on the preparation body (10.1, 11.1, 12.1), or a contact film (11.2) forming a separate preparation part.

10. The preparation (13) according to claim 7, wherein the preparation consists entirely of the material with thermoplastic properties.

11. The preparation (14) according to claim 1, wherein the preparation has the shape of a crown, bridge or prosthesis to be fixed on a natural tooth stump (20), and the material with the thermoplastic properties forms an inner surface of the crown, bridge or prosthesis or is positionable on this inner surface.

12. The preparation (15, 16) according to claim 1, wherein the preparation further comprises a fastener body (15.1, 16.1) to be fixed in a cavity of a natural tooth part, the fastener body being equipped for the fastening a further, artificial tooth part to the fastener body.

13. The preparation (16) according to claim 12, wherein the preparation further comprises at least one root part (16.2) arranged on the fastener body (16.1), the root part comprising an elastically or plastically deformable core (16.3), and a covering (16.4) of the material with thermoplastic properties arranged around the core (16.3).

14. The preparation (16) according to claim 13, wherein at a distal end of the core (16.3) there is arranged a thickening (16.5) of the core material or a plug (16.6) of a soft thermoplast.

15. The preparation (17) according to claim 1, wherein the preparation further comprises a crown part (17.1) and a connection body (17.2), and wherein the connection body (17.2) consists at least partly of the material with thermoplastic properties and is designed in a manner such that it is positionable at least partly in a cavity of a natural tooth part.

16. A method for fastening a preparation (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17) comprising at least one region (10.2, 12.2, 14.2, 15.2, 16.2, 17.2) or one part (11.2) of a material with thermoplastic properties, the at least one region forming at least part of the preparation surface and the at least one part being positionable to form at least part of the preparation surface, and the preparation having oscillation properties with damping losses so small as to require local stress concentrations for liquefying the material by oscillation, and the preparation being designed in a manner such that the stress concentrations only occur in the region of the preparation surface, the method comprising the steps of:

preparing a natural tooth part or tooth, positioning the preparation (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17) in the region of the prepared tooth part or tooth in a manner such that the material with thermoplastic properties is in contact or can be brought into contact with a dentin surface and/or an enamel surface of the natural tooth part or tooth, and

exiting the preparation into mechanical oscillation and simultaneously pressing it against the tooth part or tooth.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein for exciting with mechanical oscillation and for pressing, the preparation is pressed against the natural tooth part or tooth with the aid of a sonotrode of an ultrasound apparatus.

18. The method according to claim 16, wherein in the step of exciting and pressing mechanical oscillations are used with a frequency in the region between 2 and 200 kHz.

19. The method according to claim 16, wherein in the step of preparing dentin and/or enamel surfaces are roughened, provided with retention structures and/or pre-treated with a primer.

20. The method according to claim 16, wherein a two-part preparation (11) is used and wherein in the step of positioning firstly a first preparation part (11.2) comprising the material with the thermoplastic properties is positioned and made to oscillate, and then a second preparation part (12.1) is positioned and made to oscillate.