Relationships of Stresses on Alveolar Bone and Abutment of Dental Implant from Various Bite Forces by Three-Dimensional Finite Element Analysis

Abstract

Occlusal trauma caused by improper bite forces owing to the lack of periodontal membrane may lead to bone resorption, which is still a problem for the success of dental implant. In our study, to avoid occlusal trauma, we put forward a hypothesis that a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) pressure sensor is settled on an implant abutment to track stress on the abutment and predict the stress on alveolar bone for controlling bite forces in real time. Loading forces of different magnitudes (0 N–100 N) and angles (0–90°) were applied to the crown of the dental implant of the left central incisor in a maxillary model. The stress distribution on the abutment and alveolar bone were analyzed using a three-dimensional finite element analysis (3D FEA). Then, the quantitative relation between them was derived using Origin 2017 software. The results show that the relation between the loading forces and the stresses on the alveolar bone and abutment could be described as 3D surface equations associated with the sine function. The appropriate range of stress on the implant abutment is 1.5 MPa–8.66 MPa, and the acceptable loading force range on the dental implant of the left maxillary central incisor is approximately 6 N–86 N. These results could be used as a reference for the layout of MEMS pressure sensors to maintain alveolar bone dynamic remodeling balance.