Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
11
Dental Applications of Glasses
Leena Hupa
1
and Antti Yli-Urpo
2
1
Process Chemistry Centre,
˚
A
bo Akademi University,
˚
A
bo, Finland
2
Institute of Dentistry, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
11.1 INTRODUCTION
Biomaterials have been used for centuries to replace missing teeth. More
than 2000 years ago, the Etruscans replaced missing teeth with animal
bones and animal teeth framed in an arch of gold. Biomaterials are
used more frequently in modern dentistry than in any other field of
medicine. In dentistry, all classes of biomaterials can be applied: metals,
polymers, glasses, ceramics and composites. Although the utilisation of
bioactive glasses has been studied in several dental applications, only
a few commercial bioactive dental product applications are currently
available.
Biomaterials face a challenging environment in dental applications.
The biomaterial might be in contact with both hard and soft tissues in an
environment - the oral cavity - where a large number of microorganisms
are present. The material must therefore not support the adhesion and
growth of microorganisms, yet the material needs to adhere to biological
