Abstract Aim: To investigate whether the removal and reseating of the abutment influences the retention of Morse taper implant system. Methods: Two Morse taper implant systems were selected: Bicon Dental ImplantTM system (Bicon, LLC, Boston, MA, USA) and Kopp Implant(r) system (Kopp(r), Curitiba, PR, Brazil). In both systems, the abutment is connected to the implant with a locking taper. To seat the abutment, the same vertical force was applied in both systems. It was measured the compressive force necessary to engage effectively the locking taper connection and the tensile force to displace it. Results: The compressive force was determined by four activations in each abutment-implant set, and the sum of these forces was 21 N and 17 N in the BiconTM and Kopp(r) systems, respectively. Next, a tensile test was performed, revealing that the BiconTM system presented a 208 N resistance, whereas it was 194 N in the Kopp(r) system. Other three rounds of compression and tensile loads were applied, removing and reseating the abutment. We obtained the following tensile values: 367 N, 500 N and 756 N in the BiconTM System and 336 N, 360 N and 420 N in the Kopp(r) system. Conclusions: When the sets were subjected to repeated rounds of compressive and tensile forces, displacing and reseating the abutment, the tensile value increased.

OBJECTIVES: In some clinical situations, dentists come across partially edentulous patients, and it might be necessary to connect teeth to implants. The aim of this study was to evaluate a metal-ceramic fixed tooth/implant-supported denture with a straight segment, located in the posterior region of the maxilla, when varying the number of teeth used as abutments. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A three-element fixed denture composed of one tooth and one implant (Model 1), and a four-element fixed denture composed of two teeth and one implant (Model 2) were modeled. A 100 N load was applied, distributed uniformly on the entire set, simulating functional mastication, for further analysis of the SEQV (Von Mises) principal stresses, which were compared with the flow limit of the materials. RESULTS: In a quantitative analysis, it may be observed that in the denture with one tooth, the maximum SEQV stress was 47.84 MPa, whereas for the denture with two teeth the maximum SEQV stress was 35.82 MPa, both located in the region between the pontic and the tooth. CONCLUSION: Lower stresses were observed in the denture with an additional tooth. Based on the flow limit of the materials, porcelain showed values below the limit of functional mastication.

INTRODUÇÃO: o atrito gerado na interface braquete/fio durante a mecânica de deslizamento pode reduzir a eficiência da movimentação ortodôntica. O método de ligação do fio ao braquete exerce importante papel na determinação desse atrito. MÉTODOS: o presente estudo comparou a força de atrito gerada por quatro tipos de braquetes autoligáveis (Time®; Damon 2®; In-Ovation R® e Smart Clip®) com um grupo de braquetes ortodônticos convencionais (Dynalock®) associados a ligaduras elásticas tradicionais (Dispens-A-Stix®), que serviu como grupo controle. A força de atrito estático foi mensurada através da máquina universal de ensaios EMIC® DL 500 com dois fios de aço inoxidável com secção transversal 0,018" e 0,017" x 0,025". RESULTADOS: a análise de variância ANOVA e o teste de Tukey mostraram baixos níveis de atrito nos quatro braquetes autoligáveis associados ao fio 0,018" (P<0,05). Entretanto, os resultados observados quando os braquetes autoligáveis foram testados com fios 0,017" x 0,025" mostraram alta resistência ao deslizamento nos grupos de braquetes autoligáveis ativos.

INTRODUCTION: Friction generated at the bracket/archwire interface during sliding mechanics can reduce the efficiency of orthodontic movement. The ligation method employed to tie the archwire to the bracket plays an important role in determining this friction. METHODS: This study compared the frictional force generated by four different types of self-ligating brackets (Time™, Damon 2™, In-Ovation R™ and Smart Clip™) with a group of conventional orthodontic brackets (Dynalock™) that require the use of traditional elastomeric ligatures (ExDispens-A-Stix™), which served as the control group. Static friction force was measured using an EMIC DL™ 500 universal testing machine using stainless steel round 0.018-in and rectangular 0.017x0.025-in archwires. RESULTS: ANOVA and Tukey's test showed low levels of friction in the four self-ligating brackets in tests with the 0.018-in wire (P <0.05). However, the results noted when the self-ligating brackets were tested using 0.017x 0.025-in archwires showed high resistance to sliding in the self-ligating groups.