The Evolution of High-Strength Ceramics: the Role of Microstructure and Manufacturing

In the quest for highly esthetic and strong restorative material, dental technicians, practitioners, and manufacturers have produced several compositions of ceramic materials. Increasing the strength of ceramics without compromising their translucency remains a major challenge. Like porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns, veneering the strong and opaque ceramic cores with a translucent porcelain may improve the strength of porcelain crowns. However, frequent chipping of this weak veneering layer was a major problem. Recently, the advent of computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) has allowed the production of stronger ceramics while minimally increasing their translucency and eliminating the need for the veneering layer. Therefore, the current review aims to provide an overview and a critique of the evolution and development of all-ceramic restorations, while also focusing on the material properties and considerations related to their use in restorative dentistry.