• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.21-28
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• 2009

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the wear characteristics of human enamel opposing 2 heat-pressed ceramics (e.max Press and Empress Esthetic), conventional feldspathic porcelain (Ceramco 3) and type III gold alloy. Material and methods: Intact cusps of extracted premolars were used for enamel specimens. Five disk samples were made for each of two heat-pressed ceramics groups, conventional feldspathic porcelain group and type III gold alloy group. Wear tests were conducted in distilled water using a pin-on-disk tribometer. The amount of enamel wear was determined by weighing the enamel specimens before and after wear tests, and the weight was converted to volumes by average density. The wear tracks were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy and surface profilometer to elucidate the wear characteristics. Results: 1. Ceramco 3 led to the greatest amount of enamel wear followed by Empress Esthetic, e.max Press and type III gold alloy. However, there was no significant difference between Ceramco 3 and Empress Esthetic (P>.05), and there were also no significant differences among Empress Esthetic, e.max Press and type III gold alloy (P>.05). 2. The average surface roughness of e.max Press after wear test was smallest followed by Empress Esthetic and Ceramco 3, but there was no significant difference between Empress Esthetic and Ceramco 3 (P>.05). 3. There were no significant differences among the depth of wear tracks of all the groups (P>.05). The group that showed the largest width of wear track was Ceramco 3 followed by Empress Esthetic, e.max Press and type III gold alloy. However, there was no significant difference between e.max Press and Empress Esthetic (P>.05), and there was also no significant difference between Empress Esthetic and Ceramco 3 (P>.05). Conclusion: Within the limits of this study, heat-pressed ceramics were not more abrasive than conventional feldspathic porcelain.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.821-828
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• 2000

Metal - ceramic restorations have been the standard of fixed oral rehabilitation for over 30 years, and while many advances have been made in materials and research, the esthetic challenges of the light reflective metal substructure will always put clinician in an esthetic dilemma, for only a very talented ceramist / dentist team can create esthetics that rival nature on a repeatable basis. All ceramic restorations have also been a choice in our restorative armamentarium, but in the past, the materials have also had their own limitation, number on being question-able strength to withstand occlusal forces generated during mastication. IPS Empress 2 offers dentistry a metal free alternative to traditional restorative techniques. This clinical report describes the treatment of patients with esthetic problem of anterior dentition using Empress 2 system.

• Journal of Dental Rehabilitation and Applied Science
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.243-250
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• 2006

Due to high esthetic demands from patients, we are driven to fabricate natural-looking(form and color) restorations. In the past decade, the glass-ceramic in dentistry has been used as a material with variable crystals that affects the appearance, characteristics, and mechanical properties of metal-free fixed restoration. The conventional IPS Empress glass-ceramic is a heat-pressed, leucite reinforced material using the "lost wax" principle. This glass-ceramic has been successfully used for esthetic restorations such as all-ceramic crowns, inlays/onlays, and veneers for about 15 years. This article presents that the form and surface texture of clinical crown are duplicated by IPS-Empress system using "lost-wax technique".

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.308-315
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• 2011

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to colorimetrically evaluate the masking effect of different opacity of ingots on the final shade of IPS Empress Esthetic$^{(R)}$ laminate veneer restorations using the CIE $L^*a^*b^*$ system. Materials and methods: Six porcelain disks of IPS Empress Esthetic$^{(R)}$ system (translucency: E 01, E 03, E 0C-1, E TC-1, E TC-2, E TC-3) were fabricated with 7 mm in diameter and 0.6 mm in thickness. Six extracted human incisors (shade: A1, A3, A4, B2, B3, C3) were used as the abutment specimens. The incisors were prepared using a diamond wheel and made with a flat labial surface on the middle 1/3. For each combination of different shades of abutments and copings, the change in color was measured with a colorimeter. CIE $L^*a^*b^*$ coordinates were recorded for each specimen. Color differences (${\Delta}E$) were calculated. Descriptive statistical analysis was done. Results: ${\Delta}E$ values were significantly affected by coping translucency and abutment shade (P<.05). The color differences (${\Delta}E$) of laminate veneers among abutments with A3, B3, C3, and A4 shade were mostly below 2.7 which was within the clinically acceptable range, while color differences between A4 and B2, A3 and B2, and A1 and A4 showed more than 2.7. Conclusion: The final color of IPS Empress Esthetic$^{(R)}$ laminate veneers were significantly influenced by translucency of the coping and shade of abutment teeth. The large value difference of abutment teeth limited the masking ability by laminate veneers.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.532-537
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• 2003

Statement of the problem : IPS Empress ceramic has been used as one of a esthetic restorative material since it's development, but the broad application of IPS Empress ceramic to clinical prosthodontic field has been limited by its high material cost. Purpose : This study was investigated to evaluate the hardness and fracture toughness after recycling of the IPS Empress ceramic. Material and methods : Reused specimens of IPS Empress were fabricated with repeated pressing. The hardness(Vickers hardness) and fracture toughness of 1st, 2nd and 3rd pressed specimens were measured with Digital Micro Hardness Tester(Model MXT70, Matsuzawa Seiki Co., Ltd, Tokyo, Japan). The obtained data were analyzed using SPSS(Ver 9.5). Result : The mean value of the hardness in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd pressed Empress were $6.23{\pm}0.48MPa,\;5.50{\pm}0.25MPa$, and $5.70{\pm}0.42MPa$. The hardness of the 1st pressing ceramic was higher than those or the 2nd and 3rd pressed ceramics(P<0.05). Hardness of the 3rd pressed ceramic was greater than that of the 2nd pressed ceramic. but there was no significant difference of hardness between those two(P>0.05). The mean value of the fracture toughness was $1.71{\pm}0.16MPam^{1/2}$ in 1st pressed ceramic, $1.78{\pm}0.10MPam^{1/2}$ in 2nd pressed and $1.73{\pm}0.14MPam^{1/2}$ in 3rd pressed IPS ceramic. Fracture toughness of the 2nd pressed ceramic was the highest and that of the 1st pressed ceramic was the lowest. There was no significant difference of fracture toughness among them(P>0.05). Conclusion : Hardness of the 2nd and 3rd pressed IPS Empress ceramics were lesser than that of 1st pressed IPS Empress ceramic(P<0.05), but there was no significant changes of fracture toughness among them(P>0.05).

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.71-80
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• 2003

Development of new ceramic and esthetic need of patient increased the use of ceramic restorations. The purpose of this study was to confirm the possibility of recycling for IPS Empress2 which has a lot of advantages in esthetics. 1st, 2nd and 3rd pressed disc-shaped($10{\times}1.5mm$) IPS Empress 2 specimens were made with IPS Empress ingot(shade 200, Ivoclar, Liechtenstein) and pressing furnace(IPS Empress EP 500, Ivoclar, Liechtenstein). Flexure strength was measured with universal testing machine(Zwick 145641, Zwick, Germany), and color change and staining resistance of specimens were evaluated with colorimeter (Model TC-6FX, Tokyo Denshoku Co., Japan). The followings were drawn from this study : 1. Flexure strength of the 1st, the 2nd, and the 3rd pressed specimens showed 236.78 MPa. 247.16MPa, and 220.72MPa, respectively. Flexure strength of the 2nd pressed specimens was higher than others, but there's no statistical difference between them. 2. The color difference between the 1st and the 2nd pressed specimens was 3.25, and that between the 1st and the 3rd pressed specimens was 3.63(P<0.05). 3. The color change after staining of the 1st, the 2nd. and the 3rd pressed specimens were 1.43, 2.64, and 1.45, respectively. In this study, reused IPS Empress 2 specimens showed insignificant change of flexure strength and stain resistance, but they showed some color change according to reuse. From this results, the limited possibility of reuse for IPS Empress 2 could be considered.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.197-207
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• 2001

Development of new ceramics and esthetic needs of patients increase the use of all ceramic restorations. Fractured teeth often need metal post and core as foundation for final restoration. When all ceramic restorations are planned, metal post and core may lead to compromised esthetics because of opacity and gray color of metal post and core. Many techniques have been proposed to solve this problem such as application of an opaque porcelain to the metal core or all ceramic post and core. This study was performed to evaluate effect on color of Empress 2 crown according to various post systems. Color was evaluated by the CIE $L^*a^*b^*$ systems and measured by spectrophotometer (Model CM-3500, Minolta, Japan). Specimens were divided into 4 groups as follows Group 1 : gold cast post specimen + Empress 2 crown specimen Group 2 : application of an opaque porcelain to gold cast post specimen + Empress 2 crown specimen Group 3 : cosmopost specimen + Empress 2 crown specimen Group 4 : In-ceram post specimen + Empress 2 crown specimen. The results obtained as follows, 1. $L^*$ Values showed that group 2, 3, 4 were higher than group 1 with significant difference and group 2, 3, 4 were not significantly different. 2. $a^*$ Values and $b^*$ values also showed that group 2. 3, 4 were higher than group 1 with significant difference and group 2, 3, 4 were not significantly different. 3. ${\Delta}E^* ab$ Values showed that ${\Delta}E^* ab$ 3 was the highest value and ${\Delta}E^* ab$ 5 was the lowest value.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.599-610
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• 2001

Due to an increasing interest in esthetics and concerns about toxic and allergic reactions to certain alloys, patients and dentists have been looking for metal-free tooth-colored restorations. Recent improvement in technology of new all-ceramic materials and composite materials has broadened the options for esthetic single crown restorations. The aim of this investigation was to study the fracture strength of the metal-free posterior single crowns fabricated using two recently introduced systems, Empress 2 ceramic and Targis-Vectris. Forty premolar-shaped stainless steel dies with the 1mm-wide circumferential shoulder were prepared. Ten cylindrical crowns having a diameter of 8.0mm and total height of 7.5mm were fabricated for each crown system respectively(PFM, Empress staining technique, Empress 2 layering technique, and Targis- Vectris). The crowns were filled with cement and placed on the stainless steel dies with firm finger pressure. The crowns were then stored in distilled water at room temperature for 24 hours before testing. The crowns were tested for fracture strength in an Instron universal testing machine (Instron 6022). With a crosshead speed of 1mm/min the center of the occlusal surface of the crown was loaded using a 4-mm-diameter stainless steel ball until fracture occurred. The fracture surfaces of the crowns were gold coated and examined using scanning electron microscopy(Jeol JSM-840 Joel Ltd., Akishima, Tokyo, Japan). Within the parameters of this study the following conclusions were drawn: 1. The mean fracture strength for PFM crowns was 5829(${\pm}906$)N; for Empress staining technique the fracture strength was 1697(${\pm}604$)N; for Empress 2 Layering technique the fracture strength was 1781N(${\pm}400$)N, and the fracture strength for Targis- Vectris was 3093(${\pm}475$)N. 2. The fracture strength of the PFM crowns was significantly higher than that of the Empress 2 and the Targis-Vectris crowns (P<0.05). 3. The fracture strength of the Targis-Vectris crowns was significantly higher than that of the Empress 2 crowns (P<0.05). 4. No statistical difference was found when Empress staining technique was compared with Empress 2 layering technique. 5. The SEM image of fracture surface of Empress 2 crown showed a very dense microstructure of the lithium disilicate crystals and the SEM image of fracture surface of Targis-Vectris crown showed indentations of Vectris and some fibers tom off from Vectris.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.46 no.6
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• pp.577-585
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• 2008

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM: The discoloration of anterior teeth restoration is one of the material problems demanding retreatment. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the color stability and affecting factors on esthetic restorative materials when subjected to accelerated aging. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This study was conducted using porcelain disks (IPS Empress 2-glazed, IPS Empress 2-polished), direct restorative resin disks (SYNERGY Duo) and indirect restorative resin disks (Sinfony, TESCERA ATL). Accelerated aging was done by precipitating the specimens in 38.C distilled water and irradiating with xenon light, and the total irradiation was 397.98 KJ/mm. Color and microhardness change of the specimens were measured before accelerated aging and after 100 hours, 200 hours and 300 hours of accelerated aging, and Surface of the specimens were examined with SEM before and after 300 hours of accelerated aging. RESULTS: 1. After 300 hours' accelerated aging, a ${\Delta}E$ value was 3.3 or lower in IPS Empress 2-glazed, IPS Empress 2-polished and Sinfony. 2. After 300 hours' accelerated aging, gloss was lost and surface changes including microcracks were observed in TESCERA ATL and SYNERGY Duo, and color changes of them ranged between 3.58 and 6.40 ${\Delta}E$ units. 3. During 300 hours' accelerated aging, the microhardness of surface was increased by 3.21 - 19.64% in all kinds of composites resin. CONCLUSION: After 300 hours' accelerated aging, SEM images IPS Empress 2-glazed, IPS Empress 2-polished and Sinfony showed little morphological change and their color changes were considered to be clinically acceptable. And there was significant correlation between microhardness changes and color changes of composites (P < .05).

• Proceedings of the KACD Conference
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• 2001.11a
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• pp.593-593
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• 2001

Esthetic restoration techniques can be categorized into "Direct techniques" consist only of intraoral procedures and "Indirect techniques" include intraoral as well as extraoral laboratory steps. Those made extraorally exhibit generally enhanced esthetic potential and anatomy and better hardness and wear resistance, indirect esthetic restorations numerously applied in contemporary dentistry. Indirect restorative materials can be divided into two categories; composite resin-based materials and ceramic-based materials. These materials shows various were resistance, modulus of elasticity, repair postenital, chemical stability, and different laboratory procedures. In this session, benefit of indirect techinques, case selection of this kind of restorations, and material characteristics and fabrication produre of those materials will ber reviewed; Targis, Sculpture, Belleglass, and Post-curing of restorative composite resins in resin-based materials; Dicor, Empress, Cerec, Celay, and conventional firing porcelain in ceramic based materials.