치아를 평생 쓰기 위한 조건? | 치아 형태와 구조, 치과 재료의 역사

It’s not just a simple cosmetic treatment. It’s a restorative treatment. Let me explain why it’s considered a restoration.

What is the aesthetic aspect discussed in aesthetic societies? How can we make it as close to the natural tooth as possible? What I focused on the most was biology and mechanics. Among these, mechanics is the most important. By mechanics, I mean the material. But is this a single entity? No. People usually don’t think of teeth as composites. There is enamel and also dentin. There’s the DEJ connecting them, and inside, there’s the dental pulp.

Why did the Creator make it this way? Throughout the incredible process of evolution, we have to withstand it. What is the environment inside the mouth? It’s a very, very harsh environment. First of all, there’s moisture. We eat hot things and cold things. Also, when consuming food, acids and alkalis will also enter. Moreover, it serves a function. We use it for eating, right? So physically, there’s continuous contact. They are continuously impacted. They are used for pronunciation too, and so on. The functional aspect needs support. So teeth are placed in very challenging conditions. Yet these teeth have to be used for a lifetime.

So, should we simply make their appearance? I believe we should incorporate structural design as well as shape, just like natural teeth. In other words, it’s like architectural design. It’s a tall building, but it’s exposed to a lot of wind. It can fall over. A design that can withstand wind pressure is required. But we already have the answer. The shape and structures of teeth, the differences in thickness and composition between enamel and dentin—because of these, teeth can last a lifetime.

But then, a problem occurred. Our lifespan has unexpectedly extended more than we thought. From what I see, it seems like the design was meant to last until around one’s 40s to 50s. As teeth keep decaying and breaking, they undergo aging. As I mentioned earlier, aging. We couldn’t overcome this. If we want to overcome aging, we just have to recreate them exactly like natural teeth. Not just the appearance, but also the internal structure. That’s why I keep emphasizing the mechanics—we just need to restore everything.

What has been continuously advancing in dental treatment, in my view, is the development of materials. Initially, there weren’t any special materials. The advantage of gold was that it didn’t corrode easily, making it the best material that allowed for minimal tooth reduction. It’s an excellent material, but what’s the problem? Due to factors such as aesthetics, thermal conductivity, etc., gold is not commonly used. For anterior teeth, ceramics began to be widely used, but the problem with ceramics was that they often broke during production. In terms of aesthetics and structure, ceramics are extremely similar to enamel, but the reason for incorrect usage ultimately stems from the inability to make it well. If we can manufacture them properly, perfectly combining them with teeth, I believe we can use the material.

For teeth, it becomes possible to use a material that is most similar in terms of physical and mechanical properties. Thus, Minish was developed based on ultra-precision machining technology, which led to the option of choosing materials. What materials? Materials that are closest to my own tooth composition became available. This is also the founding purpose of my company. At the company level, we want to develop such materials. Currently, we are in ongoing discussions with nanotechnology companies to even create materials with components like hydroxyapatite, very similar to real enamel, and develop them in collaboration with Vita, using our own Minish blocks.

If resin materials were as similar to enamel and didn’t have polymerization shrinkage, perhaps Minish wouldn’t be necessary. It would seem too easy. Do you understand? Let’s try to understand Minish. What’s it like when we do resin treatment? We fill it and provide a bevel. Why do we give a bevel? To increase the contact area and improve retention. Minish is exactly this. It extends the bevel as far as possible on the damaged part.

So, Minish, even being ceramic, has no finishing line. It also cleans the surrounding environment of the adhering part. A well-done Minish cannot have its boundaries found. The color should be confusing as well. Everything should be confusing. What does a gap mean? If you see the cement, it’s a failure. That’s how much it has lifted. Adhesive has entered. Minish doesn’t fall off later either. Ceramics keep being extended.

So, what makes Minish different from laminates can be seen by looking at the gum side. In the past, this was impossible. Why? The impression itself didn’t come out. It wasn’t visible. But with the advent of scanners, how did it change? It’s visible now. We must reach the limits of the technology. It’s shown. It can be made since it’s visible, so it has to be extended as much as possible. It can be fractured through physical, mechanical force, but it can also deteriorate due to chemical factors or heat. So, where do crowns start to break? It starts at the cement gap.

Patients’ demands are very diverse. These technologies, depending on the situation, can lead to treatment or overtreatment. We are currently operating a Minish Academy as an education system for dentists, and we have conducted up to the third session. Also, next year in March, Dr. Kang will explain it one-on-one. Please give another round of applause.