CAD/CAM high strength glass ceramics

Abstract

T he increased demand for high-quality, natural looking restorations fabricated in a single appointment has fueled the development of newer restorative materials and technologies. 1 Highly esthetic ceramic restorations can be fabricated in less than an hour using computer-aided design/computer-assisted manufacture (CAD/CAM) technology. 2,3 The main disadvantage of esthetic all-ceramic restorations made of feldspathic porcelain or leucite-reinforced glass-ceramic has been related to their relatively low flexural strength (130 to 160 MPa). However , the development of high-strength glass-ceramic with higher flexural strength (210 to 540 MPa) offers an alternative to conventional feldspathic or leucite-reinforced ceramics. 4 Lithium disilicate and zirconia-reinforced lithium silicate high-strength glass-ceramics provide an adequately esthetic appearance without requiring the addition of veneering ceramic, resulting in superior structural integrity. 5 Furthermore, high-QDT 2015 39