OCCLUSION IN DENTAL PORCELAIN.

Introduction
Function of dental restorative materials is very important for the well being of the
patient. Occlusion of dental porcelain is one of the factors that determines the
function and success of the restoration. Therefore thorough knowledge of occlusion
is the basis for understanding why teeth get loose, why they wear excessively, break
cusps, fracture restorations, or shift position. when designing porcelain crowns or
bridges it is important to consider factors such as periodontal health, fracture of
porcelain and reasons behind such problems should be considered. This assignment
will discuss factors influencing occlusion in porcelain.

Minimizing excessive wear of enamel in dental ceramics

To minimize the wear of enamel in dental ceramics, the following steps must be
consired:

Ensure cuspid-guided disclusion.

Eliminate occlusal prematurities.
Use metal in functional bruxing areas.
Polish functional ceramic surfaces.
Glazing porcelain.

There are two main objectives when building occlusion in porcelain as stated by
(McLean 1980: 415).

Maintenance of periodontal health and masticatory function.

Prevention of fracture by developing most favourable occlusion.

Periodontal Health
To maintenance periodontal health

Buccal and lingual cusps must be in correct relationship with the fossae in the
opposing jaw.
The cusps must be developed to be at the correct height and angles.
Anatomical contours must be well developed.
The Height of contours of teeth should be in harmony with surrounding
gingival.
Avoid premature contacts on the non-working side to prevent porcelain
fractures
In an ideal occlusion the maximum intercuspation must be in line with the
centric relation as stated by (McLean 1980: 415).

Prevention of Fractures

Figure 1: Illustrates porcelain fracture due

crown contact on marginal ridge

Figure 2, a demonstration of a porcelain

Fractured due to widened occlusal table

mandibular buccal cusps must not occlude on Marginal ridges of lower buccal
cusps to prevent fracturing fine porcelain edge as illustrated in figure 1.
Occlusal tables must be kept at original size and not be widened, since
increased surface area of porcelain increases chances of porcelain breaking.
as demonstrated in figure 2.
minimum tooth contact outside centric relation must be maintained to reduce
fracture in porcelain crowns, and these will reduce stresses in opposing
cusps.
Canine teeth must be used as discluding mechanism. lingual inclination of
canines help in providing harmony with the mandibular border movements by
carrying the occlusal load (figure 3) below.
Failure to provide the correct lingual contours on the canines will result in;
1. Loosened crown tooth
2. Heavy wear of enamel if the opposing teeth are natural
(McLean 1980: 415).

Figure 3: illustrates canine discluding mechanism.

Cusps Positioning

Mandibular buccal cusp should contact the upper tooth in a position whereby
the stresses will be directed through the long axis of both teeth, as illustrated
in figure 4 below.
Ensuring that the mandibular buccal cusps contact the fossae of the maxillary
teeth will in turn provide great stability
The centric relation must correspond with the cusp to fossa relationship which
in porcelain is particularly known as long centric
Premature contacts in the posterior teeth may result in maximum damage to
porcelain and the periodontium,
Since mandibular lingual cusps are regarded as non-functioning cusps, they
must not be in contact with the upper. Therefore a 1mm height below the
buccal must be provided.

Size of Cusp tip and Fossa

Very Sharp porcelain cusps easily fractures, therefore sharp edges must be
avoided during finishing.
Average contact area of porcelain cusp tip must be 1mm in diameter and
must present a smooth domed surface.
The fossa must be relatively larger to accommodate the cusp.

Figure 4: An illustration of stresses directed

through the long axis in porcelain occlusion

Porcelain condensation
Porcelain for metal ceramics, ceramics and other applications is supplied in powder
which is designed to be mixed with water or other specialised liquid to form a
condensed desired form. The powder particles are of particular size to distribution to
produce the most densely packed porcelain when they are properly condensed. It is
said that if the particles are of the same size, the density of the packing would not be
nearly as high. Thorough condensation is also crucial in obtaining dense packing of
the powder particles. Dense packing of the powder particles provide two benefits:
lower firing shrinkage and less porosity in the fired porcelain. And the packing or
condensation can be achieved by various methods including: vibration, spatulation
and brush technique (annusavice 2003: 671).
First method uses mild vibration to settle / pack the wet powder densely on the
underlying framework. And the excess water is wiped with the away with a clean
tissue or fine brush.
The Second method , a small spatula is used to apply and smooth the wet porcelain.
The smooth action brings the excess water to the surface, where it is removed.
Third method include addition of dry porcelain powder to the surface to absorb the
water. The dry powder is placed by a brush to the side opposite from an increment of
wet porcelain (Yamamoto 1990: 49).

Methods of building porcelain cusps

When building porcelain all the methods that have been used aims at placing the
cusps at the right position and control their shrinkage (McLean 1980: 419).

Using a sable brush method to develop occlusion in porcelain is regarded as

the best method in developing occlusion.
The cusps must be built to the desired height, never be overbuilt and carve
back the fired overbuilt porcelain by grinding.
Attempting to do grind overbuilt porcelain leads to;
-square and flat appearance,
-built in colour is mostly damaged

Occlusal development methods are basically categorised into:

Brush additive technique.

Porcelain cone technique to build a diagnostic wax-up (McLean 1980: 419).

Brush Additive technique

McLean (1980: 421) states that, wet porcelain sable brush is used to develop
occlusion in porcelain.
Method of Controlling shrinkage

porcelain cusps must be build in at least two or three bakes to full occlusion
(articulated in occlusion)
Open articulation by one to two millimetres, and build porcelain cusps with
raised pin will compensate for shrinkage.

Technique 1
Since there is reduction in cusp height due to shrinkage, two further porcelain
firing are required.
Prior second firing allows staining or effect colours to be applied in the depth
of porcelain.
Second and third firing allows Minor corrections in anatomy or occlusal table
to be done.
Minimum grinding is required on the fired material to achieve clear colours
and very detailed morphology.
Second and third bake should not be fired at very high temperature it is
considered the most successful method in the laboratory.
(McLean 1980: 421).

Technique 2
Overbuilding helps to compensate for shrinkage.
Useful where porcelain is built against opposing diagnostic wax up.
Disadvantages
Difficult to allow firing colours to internally unless the colours are placed in the
wet porcelain.

More than one bake may be required in cases where occlusion is short, or in
cases where there is high occlusal surfaces which requires grinding
(McLean 1980: 421).

Enamel and dentine application

Using the incremental brush, the dentine and the enamel porcelains are
applied.
Each cusp must be correctly placed in lobe formation in relation to the
opposing teeth (McLean: 422).

Basic principles to follow in building occlusion in a bridge

Do not overbuild and cut back fired porcelain, instead build up to required
occlusal height.
Shrinkage may be controlled and maintain by further application of porcelain
cusp tips accurately further porcelain.
Cusps must be always be built in lobe formation .Maintaining developmental
lobes help keep the cusps in the correct position and hence help to easily
control occlusion building.
Grinding to shape is less good than the incremental brush build up of cusps,
because the cusps tend to flatten and lose their convexity of cusp slopes and
marginal ridges (McLean 1980: 426).
Full Porcelain occlusion
Brush additive technique with articulator pin set at correct vertical height
(McLean 1980: 426).

Building the mandibular porcelain cusps

Where maxillary teeth are opposing the lower porcelain teeth it is

advantageous to place the mandibular buccal cusp against a selected fossa in
the maxillary tooth.
Such fossa should be marked on the cast.
In cases whereby porcelain teeth are opposing each other, it is advisable to
completely build the mandibular teeth first and mandibular buccal cusp must
be positioned such that the cusp-fossa relationship will be obtained with the
upper teeth.
Mandubular buccal cusps must be positioned in optimum with the maxillary to
obtain a cusp fossa relationship. It is achieved by building a diagnostic wax up
on a second upper biscuit bake as a guide.
Approximately 1 to 1.5mm space should be left on metal framework during
contraction for porcelain on both maxillary and mandibular occlusal surfaces.

The maxillary build up should be developed to correct contour with the

occlusal table to be in harmony with the remaining maxillary teeth.
The positioning of teeth should be influenced by the curves of the Spee and
Wilson, and as a result the Malpositioned teeth may be re-aligned.
Porcelain will shrink after the first biscuit firing, mainly from the occlusal
surface, however the buccal and lingual contours should not alter the basic
shape and these contours will assist in determining the position for the
mandibular cusps. (McLean1980: 426)
Grinding in the occlusion

It is important that after the final biscuit bake minimal grinding should
be made on porcelain
Because the main aim should be building porcelain occlusion without
grinding

Glazing of porcelain surfaces.

Natural glazed (auto-glazed or self-glazed) porcelain is much stronger than ground,
rough, non-glazed porcelain. When glazed is removed by grinding porcelain surface,
the strength may be reduced by 40-46% as compared to the glazed surface. The
glaze is effective in reducing crack propagations within the outer surface. Natural
glaze treatment is important to rough porcelain surfaces to increase the fracture
resistance. It is a common practise of the dentist to adjust occlusion by grind the
surface of porcelain, and this as a result compromises the strength of porcelain.
Therefore it is important to make sure that premature contacts are eliminated prior to
finishing of porcelain.

Conclusion
Planning is one of the most important factor when designing occlusion in dental
porcelain, since poor planning may result in fracturing crowns, loosened crowns or
compromised periodontal health. Therefore it is crucial to remember that cusps-fossa
relationship should be always positioned along the long axis of both teeth and
minimum tooth contact outside centric relation must be maintained to avoid fracturing
and loosening of teeth.