Study on Occlusion-induced Mechanical Force Distribution in Dental Pulp Using 3-D Modeling Based on Finite Element Analysis

Abstract

The dental pulp plays an important role in maintaining the functional status of the tooth. Proper masticatory force helped maintaining the dental pulp vitality. However, the force distributed into the dental pulp could not be directly measured. Currently available simulation models were single unit and/or unrealistic in shape and dimension. The purpose of this study was to develop a novel real geometry of whole teeth 3D model based on the CT scan system and conducted static structural analyses using the finite element analysis (FEA). The developed model of the mandibular first molar consisted of multicomponent of enamel, dentin and dental pulp. The masticatory loading condition for simulation was performed in three conditions at the average biting force of 54.3 MPa. The results showed that the average occlusal pressure did not cause failure of the tooth components as the max Von Mises stress did not exceed its ultimate strength. Simulation results revealed that the average normal stresses at the peaks of the dental pulp was only 0.003 MPa, which was less than 1% of that exerted on the enamel.