Research and Education
Vertical repositioning accuracy of magnetic mounting systems on 4 articulator models

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prosdent.2017.04.006Get rights and content

Abstract

Statement of problem

Research of the ability of a cast mounted on an articulator on maintaining the identical position of a cast mounted on an articulator after repeated repositioning is lacking, despite the possible effects this may have on the occlusion of a mounted cast.

Purpose

The purpose of this in vitro study was to verify and compare the vertical repositioning accuracy of 4 different, commercially available articulator magnetic mounting plate systems.

Material and methods

Four articulators and their associated magnetic mounting plates were selected for the study. These were the Artex AR articulator (Amann Girrbach AG), the Denar Mark II articulator (Whip Mix Corp), the Kavo Protar Evo articulator (Kavo Dental GmbH), and the SAM3 articulator (SAM Präzisionstechnik GmbH). Three new magnetic mounting plates were prepared for each articulator system. The repositioning accuracy of each mounting plate was evaluated by comparing the standard deviation of the vertical distances measured between the mounting plate and a laser displacement sensor. The lower arm of the articulator was secured, and the vertical distance was measured by positioning the laser displacement sensor positioned vertically above the mounting plate. Once the vertical distance was measured, the mounting plate was detached from the articulator and reattached manually to prepare for the next measurement. This procedure was repeated 30 times for each of the 3 magnetic mounting plates. Data were analyzed by ANOVA for 2-stage nested design and the Levene test (α=.05).

Results

Significant differences were detected among articulator systems and between magnetic mounting plates of the same type. The standard deviations of the measurements made with the Artex AR articulator, Denar Mark II articulator, Kavo Protar Evo articulator, and SAM3 articulator were 0.0027, 0.0308, 0.0214, and 0.0215 mm, respectively. Thus, the repositioning accuracy could be ranked in the order as follows: Artex AR, Kavo Protar Evo, SAM3, and Denar Mark II.

Conclusions

The position of the magnetic mounting plate after repositioning did not maintain an identical position in the vertical dimension on any of the 4 articulator models tested. The repositioning accuracy of the mounting plates showed significant differences among the articulators tested in this study.

Section snippets

Material and Methods

The Artex AR articulator (Amann Girrbach AG), the Denar Mark II articulator (Whip Mix Corp), the Kavo Protar Evo articulator (Kavo Dental GmbH), and the SAM3 articulator (SAM Präzisionstechnik GmbH) and their associated magnetic mounting plates were selected for the study. The articulator was tightly secured on the laboratory jack (LJA-10163; Sigma Koki) with a custom-built device (PSI Trading Corp). The laser displacement sensor (30-05T1; Sick AG), which had a resolution of 0.001 mm, was

Results

The standard deviations of the measurements with the Artex AR articulator, Denar Mark II articulator, Kavo Protar Evo articulator, and SAM3 articulator were 0.0027, 0.0308, 0.0214, and 0.0215 mm, respectively (Table 1). Thus, the repositioning accuracy could be ranked in the order of Artex AR, Kavo Protar Evo, SAM3, and Denar Mark II.

Significant differences were detected among the articulator systems (Tables 2, 3) and between the magnetic mounting plates of the same type (Table 2).

Post hoc

Discussion

Statistical differences were found among the tested articulators in terms of the accuracy of mounting plate repositioning in the vertical axis. Therefore, the null hypothesis that no significant difference would be found in the repositioning accuracy among articulators or among magnetic mounting plates was rejected. The measurement variance of the Artex AR articulator was significantly less than that of the other articulators, which indicates that the mounting plates of the Artex AR articulator

Conclusions

Based on the findings of this in vitro study, the following conclusions were drawn:

  • 1.

    Positional variations were detected during the repositioning of magnetic mounting plates of 3 selected articulator systems in the vertical direction.

  • 2.

    Additional studies that can show 3D position changes of the mounting plate are required.

  • 3.

    The number of positional variations were significantly different among the examined articulators and among the mounting plates.

  • 4.

    Occlusal inspection and adjustment processes may be

References (14)

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Supported by the Technological Innovation R and D Program (S2311063) funded by the Small and Medium Business Administration (Republic of Korea). Statistical consultation was supported by a grant from the Korean Health Technology R and D Project, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Republic of Korea (HI14C1062).

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© 2017 by the Editorial Council for The Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry.