Full-contour Zirkonia Crowns in the Esthetic Zone in Heavy Grinders

Objectives: Full contour zirkonia crowns are suggested as an alternative to bi-layered all-ceramic or metal-ceramic crowns for patients with heavy grinding parafunctions. Documentation of clinical success and patient-reported satisfaction is, however, limited.
The aim of this retrospective study was to assess the clinical success and patient satisfaction of full-contour zirkonia crowns in the esthetic zone.

Methods: Thirteen patients with a severely worn dentition in need of prosthetic rehabilitation due to heavy grinding had received a total of
84 full-contour zirkonia crowns (BruxZir). The restorations were all made by one dentist and one dental technician. Clinical assessment was done 1-3 years after rehabilitation and done by two calibrated dentists using the California Dental Association-scale (CDA) scale. All patients completed a written questionnaire with 8 items regarding satisfaction. Six items were on a four-pointed Likerts scale ranging from very satisfied to very dissatisfied and two items regarding complications and choice of material were dichotomous yes or no.

Results: All patients reported very satisfied or satisfied with the crowns in general, with the colour, shape and cleaning ability of the crowns. One patient was slightly dissatisfied with chewing ability and two patients were slightly dissatisfied with the amount of preoperative information. Eleven patients reported no problems with the crowns and all patients would choose the same material again.
The dentists evaluated all crowns as excellent or acceptible regarding surface, colour, anatomy and marginal fit. The overall CDA score was acceptable .

Conclusions: Dentists report acceptable charachteristics of full-contour zirkonia crowns in the esthetic zone after 1-3 years in function and patients report satisfaction with the crowns. Full-contour zirkonia crowns are thus a realistic restoration modality in the esthetic zone in heavy grinders.