Thermal stress in teeth.

Observations of crack damage in the tooth structure from in vivo studies and in vitro experimental thermal cycling studies were combined with numerical analysis techniques to identify and isolate the influence of thermal stresses on the creation and propagation of cracks in teeth. The factors considered in this study included: (a) variations in tooth type or geometry (molar, bicuspid, etc.), (b) tooth age, (c) material properties of the tooth, (d) the magnitude of the change in the temperature of the environment surrounding the tooth, and (e) the thermal resistance between the tooth and the medium surrounding the tooth.