By

Arturo N Natali, Centre of Mechanics of Biological Materials, University of Padova, Italy

Book Description

Publication Date: April 24, 2003 | ISBN-10: 0415306663 | ISBN-13: 978-0415306669 | Edition: 1

Dental Biomechanics provides a comprehensive, timely, and wide-reaching survey of the relevant aspects of biomechanical investigation within the dental field. Leading the reader through the mechanical analysis of dental problems in dental implants, orthodontics, and natural tooth mechanics, this book covers an increasingly important and popular subject area. It also addresses a number of contemporary discussions including:

Hard and soft tissue mechanics
Relief procedures using computer tomography, evaluation of image processing techniques, and pre-surgical activity
Dental materials relating to implants, titanium cast devices, metallurgic problems and implant surface treatments
Mechanical testing procedures for reliability evaluation of dental devices
Relevant aspects of clinical practice with reference to biomechanical problems
Orthodontic treatments in relation to the mechanical characteristics of orthodontic appliances
Numerical modeling in dental biomechanics, highlighting the relevance of this approach for the investigation of dental problems
Mechanics of materialsA unique book, Dental Biomechanics will be of interest to all bioengineers and clinicians with its presentation of a multidisciplinary approach to dental biomechanics based on mechanical, clinical, and chemical-physical knowledge.

Book Review

British Dental Journal 195, 115 (2003)
F McDonald

This book consists of 264 pages broken into 12 chapters. It covers diverse topics of biomechanics relating to dentistry from mechanics of bone tissue in the periodontal ligament through to titanium based materials. There are two sections of specific interest for orthodontics and there is a reasonable reading list/reference list at the end of each chapter. The book covers many of the techniques incorporating mechanics within dentistry, including finer element analysis and other mechanical considerations. There are sections on different types of models, describing how materials behave under mechanical load.

Overall the book is reasonably well put together although this reviewer finds that some of the drawings, particularly of dental structures could be improved. The morphology on teeth seems to vary considerably. Additionally, it is always disappointing in a reference list of a book of this type to find outside citations to other books are included when what we should be moving towards is more evidence base, with specific articles providing the baseline data.

The cost of this book, however, whilst reflecting a professional presentation, does seem a little overstated.