History of dental implant materials

The material of dental implants is divided into two parts: the root material and the crown material. The crown material can be applied flexibly according to the patient’s wishes, while the root material is strictly regulated. In the long history of human exploration, there are many materials used for dental implant roots, such as gold, precious stones, lead, iron, iridium, platinum, silver, etc., but also porcelain, rubber, ivory, etc. With the development of industry, metal materials with high strength and good corrosion resistance emerged, such as cobalt-chromium alloy, titanium, tantalum, etc. After the 70s, bioceramics, hydroxyapatite, bioactive carbon appeared, and in the 80s, bioactive materials such as hydroxyapatite were used to make implants. At present, the commonly used implant material is mainly titanium, and the coating is also based on titanium or titanium alloy. The physical and chemical properties of titanium are known for its light weight, stainless steel and high strength processing properties. Titanium is widely used in medical applications such as artificial bones and joints, heart valves, cardiac pacemakers, dental implants, etc. Titanium has good wear resistance, good corrosion resistance, mainly due to the formation of oxide film on the surface, being oxidation stability at room temperature, air heating to 800 degrees above oxidation intense; with semiconductor properties; low modulus of elasticity, similar to bone, can resonate; good biocompatibility, non-toxic and non-side effects, non-magnetic, non-irritating, stable in the body; good wettability, not easy to attach organic matter. It has good application prospects.