Comparison of castability and surface roughness of commercially pure titanium and cobalt-chromium denture frameworks

Statement of problem. Titanium is a biocompatible material, but it is not w idely used in clinical dentistry for conventional removable denture framewo rks. Little research exists on its applicability. Purpose. This study compared the casting accuracy and roughness of titanium and cobalt-chromium denture frameworks. Material and methods. Twenty Kennedy Class II, Division 1 removable partial denture frameworks were fabricated with commercially pure titanium (n = 10 ) and a cobalt-chromium alloy (n = 10). The casting accuracy of each framew ork was determined by visual, radiographic, and microscopic methods. The ro ughness of each polished framework surface was analyzed with atomic force m icroscopy. Results. The clinical fit, porosities, and microporosities of both types of metal frameworks were qualitatively similar. The surface roughness of poli shed pure titanium and cobalt-chromium frameworks was 104.43 +/- 69.24 nm a nd 133.91 +/- 40.92 nm, respectively. This difference was not statistically significant (P>.05). Conclusion. The clinical fit, porosity, and surface roughness of the titani um and cobalt-chromium frameworks fabricated for this study were comparable .