Internal porosities, retentive force, and survival of cobalt–chromium alloy clasps fabricated by selective laser-sintering

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to evaluate internal porosities, retentive force values and survival of cobalt–chromium (Co–Cr) alloy clasps fabricated by direct metal laser-sintering (DMLS) and compare them to conventionally cast clasps. MethodsEmbrasure clasps were digitally designed fitting teeth 35 and 36 on identical metal models (N = 32). Sixteen clasps were fabricated using DMLS (group DMLS) and another sixteen clasps were additively manufactured from wax and then cast from a Co–Cr alloy (group CAST). Internal porosities were examined using micro-focus X-ray (micro-CT) and analyzed applying Kolmogorov–Smirnov test, Mann–Whitney test, and T test (significance level: p < 0.050). A universal testing machine was used to determine the retentive force values at baseline and after 1095, 5475, 10,950 and 65,000 cycles of simulated aging. Data were analyzed employing Kolmogorov–Smirnov test, one-way ANOVA, and Scheffé’s post-hoc test (significance level: p < 0.050). Survival was estimated for 65,000 cycles of artificial aging using Kaplan–Meier analysis. ResultsMicro-CT analysis revealed a higher prevalence (p < 0.001), but a more homogeneous size and a significantly smaller mean (p = 0.009) and total volume (p < 0.001) of internal porosities for group DMLS. The groups showed mean initial retentive force values of 13.57 N (CAST) and 15.74 N (DMLS), which significantly declined over aging for group CAST (p = 0.003), but not for group DMLS (p = 0.107). Survival was considerably higher for group DMLS (93.8%) than for group CAST (43.8%) after 65,000 cycles of aging. ConclusionsClasps made by laser-sintering could be an alternative to conventional cast clasps for the fabrication of removable partial denture frameworks.