Degradation of tooth structure and restorative materials: A review

The use of artificial materials to replace natural dental tissue is a common practice in dentistry. Due to health aspects one must be concerned about the risks that the corrosion and wear of these materials may induce. Vertical loss and the release of wear particles are especially of interest. The insight into corrosion-wear processes in that field is however still in its infancy. This paper gives an overview of the degradation processes that one may encounter on artificial materials commonly used in dentistry and more especially in restorative dentistry. Corrosion-wear as such is not yet well documented from in vivo data. Wear of restorative materials must mimic the wear behaviour of natural enamel and dentin under function. In vitro test results are presented elsewhere in this special issue of WEAR.