An abutment screw loosening study of a Diamond Like Carbon-coated CP titanium implant

Abstract

The aim of this study was to quantify the extent of abutment screw loosening and thus understand the role of frictional and wear factors in abutment screw loosening by using a cyclic loading device to compare Diamond Like Carbon (DLC)-coated and non-coated implants. The properties of DLC films, including hardness, wear resistance, chemical stability, and biocompatibility, are similar to those of real diamond materials. In this study, a 1-mu m thick DLC film served to protect and lubricate a layer of commercially-pure titanium affixed to the top of a dental implant (external hexagon-shaped implant). A cyclic loading force was then applied to the top of the prosthetic portion of the implants in order to determine the difference in looseness of the titanium abutment screw between ten DLC-coated implants and ten non-coated implants. The abutment screw loosening tests were performed with 100 N of force at a frequency of 20 Hz. Data indicate that implants with a DLC coating are more resistant to an applied force (P = 0.002) than are those without the coating. We hope these results will be useful for preventing implant abutment screw loosening.