Role of radioactive dental materials in causing oral cancer

Role of radioactive dental materials in causing oral cancer



Zirconia-based ceramics are increasingly being used in dental prosthesis. The bio compatibility of dental materials gives the reason to replace metal cores, which are known to cause local toxic reactions and delayed allergic reactions in oral tissues.
 
However, some people are concerned about the usage of zirconia because the physical properties of dental material are known to contain non-negligible quantities of natural radionuclides in the U/Th series.

On zirconia samples utilised for dental applications, combined alpha and gamma spectrometry studies as well as beta dosimetry were performed.
Samples were offered in powder and/or solid block form.

The findings revealed that the beta dose rate in zirconia ceramics was only slightly greater than in natural teeth on average, and was generally lower than in feldspathic and glass ceramics. Because of the comparatively high quantities of 40K (between 2 and 3 kBqkg-1) in these materials, they are known to produce a beta dosage much higher than that measured from real teeth. 

The U/Th series radionuclide content in the zirconia sample was calculated to be less than 15 Bqkg-1, which is unquestionably less than the IAEA exclusion criterion of 1 kBqkg-1 suggested in the Safety Standard Series.

However, beta dosimetry experiments revealed the possibility of inhomogeneous clusters of radioactivity, which might result in local doses exceeding the background.

Types of Dental Materials

Dental gold is composed of roughly 75% gold with trace amounts of palladium and silver. Other trace amounts of platinum, copper, and zinc are employed infrequently. Platinum, copper, and zinc have antibacterial capabilities, making them ideal for healing properties. Gold crowns have little radioactivity.

  1. CEREC crowns are produced from a variety of chemicals, the exact composition of which is private and not disclosed. The CEREC blocks, on the other hand, could be ceramic (possibly derived from feldspathic porcelain) or resin, and hence have radioactive properties comparable to other dental ceramic materials like zirconia.

  2. The biological properties of dental materials have made Zirconia the best option for dental restorations. Depending on their initial source, they may contain trace amounts of other elements, including radionuclides. 

The radioactivity of yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia polycrystal (Y-TZP) artificial hip joints has gotten a lot of interest recently. A ceramic femoral head weighing roughly 100 g produces about 0.13–0.53 mSv of radiation each year (Porstendorfer et al. 1996).

In comparison, an all-ceramic dental implant weighs less than 2 g and results in an annual radiation exposure of about 10 Sv. That is only a day's worth of background radiation.

Let us now investigate whether radioactivity should be considered when selecting dental materials. Many other aspects should be considered while choosing on the type of crown to use, especially when the radioactivity of the material employed is much below the level of background radiation.


Essentially the materials that come from the Chinese dental materials supplier are at the great risk of use. These are known to contain more than permissible limits of radioactive materials known to cause oral cancers. If you use materials from trusted sources, then there is no better option than Zirconia.

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