Stress shielding and fatigue limits of poly‐ether‐ether‐ketone dental implants

Abstract The poly‐ether‐ether‐ketone (PEEK) polymer is of great interest as an alternative to titanium in orthopedics because of its biocompatibility and low elastic modulus. This study evaluated the fatigue limits of PEEK and the effects of the low elastic modulus PEEK in relation to existing dental implants. Compressive loading tests were performed with glass fiber‐reinforced PEEK (GFR‐PEEK), carbon fiber‐reinforced PEEK (CFR‐PEEK), and titanium rods. Among these tests, GFR‐PEEK fatigue tests were performed according to ISO 14801. For the finite element analysis, three‐dimensional models of dental implants and bone were constructed. The implants in the test groups were coated with a 0.5‐mm thick and 5‐mm long PEEK layer on the upper intrabony area. The strain energy densities (SED) were calculated, and the bone resorption was predicted. The fatigue limits of GFR‐PEEK were 310 N and were higher than the static compressive strength of GFR‐PEEK. The bone around PEEK‐coated implants showed higher levels of SED than the bone in direct contact with the implants, and the wider diameter and stiffer implants showed lower levels of SED. The compressive strength of the GFR‐PEEK and CFR‐PEEK implants ranged within the bite force of the anterior and posterior dentitions, respectively, and the PEEK implants showed adequate fatigue limits for replacing the anterior teeth. Dental implants with PEEK coatings and PEEK implants may reduce stress shielding effects. Dental implant application of PEEK polymer—fatigue limit and stress shielding. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2012