TO YOUR HEALTH Innovations in Dentistry: Dental Materials and Your Health BY SAMMY NOUMBISSI, DDS, MS
Going to the dentist to repair or replace broken teeth is something ZHDOOKDYHWRGRDWVRPHSRLQWLQRXUOLYHV'HQWLVWVDQGWKHGHQWDO industry go to great lengths to make sure the products and materials used in the treatment of oral problems are safe and biocompatible. In GHQWLVWU\LPSODQWHGGHYLFHVUDQJHIURP¿OOLQJVWRGHQWDOLPSODQWVDQG YDULRXVW\SHVRI¿[HGGHQWDOSURVWKHVHVDQGGHYLFHV %\IDUWKHPRVWFRPPRQO\LPSODQWHGGHYLFHVLQGHQWLVWU\DUHGHQ - tal implants. They were introduced in dentistry almost sixty years ago and were made of titanium and titanium alloys. Titanium is a metal widely used in healthcare and aeronautics, as well as in many other industrial applications. However, metals used for dental implants are less and less pure and contain low percentages of other metals such as aluminum, cobalt, chromium, nickel, vanadium and titanium. Virtu- ally all dental implants are made from alloys, meaning they are a com- ELQDWLRQRIVHYHUDOGL̆ HUHQWPHWDOVLQFOXGLQJWKHDERYHOLVWHGRQHV 0XOWLSOHDOOHUJ\DQGLPPXQRORJ\VWXGLHVKDYHFRQYHUJHGWRUHSRUW WKDWDSSUR[LPDWHO\WHQWR¿IWHHQSHUFHQWRIWKHSRSXODWLRQH[SHULHQF - es some form of allergic reaction to metal. Therefore, it is important to consider alternatives to metal implants especially when they are expected to perform for a lifetime, such as orthopedic and dental im- plants. A person who is sensitive or allergic to nickel, for example, is very likely to be sensitive to an implant made from an alloy that contains other metals even in low concentration. It has also been de- termined that women have higher incidences of metal sensitivity than men. Anyone that has had a history of being sensitive to costume jew- elry, stainless steel, sunscreens, experienced irritation from belt buck- les, bra clips, etc., is highly likely to be sensitive to a metal implant.
,QWKHGHQWDO¿HOGLWLVQRWXQFRPPRQWRREVHUYHSDWLHQWVUHFHLYLQJ metal dental implants either breakout in rashes, or experience hair loss or fatigue, or reject the implant outright without any sign of infec- tion. These are called “aseptic implant failures”, when there is a type of immune response to the implant. At best, the body will successfully reject the implant; in the worst case, the implant survives rejection, but over time causes gradual jawbone loss or other health problems. 0HWDO GHQWDO LPSODQWV ZHUH RULJLQDOO\ PDGH RXW RI FRPPHUFLDOO\ pure titanium or titanium alloy, providing the only option for anyone replacing teeth with dental implants. Titanium and titanium alloys have been generally considered to be biocompatible. However, with growing evidence to the contrary provided by researchers and patients alike, we now know that placing metallic dental implants and other re-
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58—PATHWAYS—Winter 25-26
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