Angulated abutments and perimplants stress: F.E.M. analysis.

The long-term success of an implant supported prosthesis depends on many variables. In addition to the osseointegration rules that are commonly acknowledged, a clinician should consider also the biomechanical concepts related to the manufacturing process of a prosthetic structure assembly and their effects on the bone/implant interface. These concepts are particularly important when the anatomical structures leads to angulate the prosthetic component with respect to the fixture. In this study the stress distribution on the bone and on the prosthetic components was evaluated by means of a Finite Element Analysis (FEA). The effect of abutment axis angle was investigated considering three different measures: 15°, 25° and 35°. The simulation of both 450N maximal biting and 100N functional forces, highlighted the stress trend, which suggests as a maximum limit to choose an abutment with an angulation of 25°.