Influence of the Arabic-Coffee on the Overall Color of Glazed or Polished Porcelain Veneers – In vitro Study

Sometimes, porcelain restorations experience some degree of colour change in oral environment, which could be related to the quality of diet and surface roughness of these restorations.

The aim of this in-vitro study was to evaluate the influence of Arabic-Coffee on the overall color of glazed or polished porcelain veneers fabricated from four different porcelain materials and two different thicknesses.

A total of 160 porcelain disc of tested specimens were fabricated to a standardized thickness of 1.00 mm and 0.6mm using the following materials: Feldspathic porcelain, Zircon, E-max Press, and E-max CAD; (80 discs for each thickness and 20 specimens of each material used). Veneer specimens from each material were randomly divided into two subgroups (n = 10): 10 specimens were kept as glazed, were the other 10 tested specimens were adjusted with diamond burs, and then polished with Ivoclar Vivadent ceramic polishing kits using the recommended protocol for polishing provided by the company. A color of all tested specimens was measured using Vita Easy Shade Spectrophotometer. Then, all specimens were immersed in Arabic coffee (Al Mosafer Coffee, Saudi Arabia) and theromcycled for 1 week, and the colors of all tested specimens were then recorded again.

It was shown that there is a significant difference in the average color changes before and after immersing in Arabic-Coffee for all materials and thicknesses used in the current study. In-addition, significant differences in color changes were noticed between glazed and polished specimens. Moreover, colour change caused by the coffee was not significantly related to the thickness of the specimens used.

Color stability of porcelain materials could be affected by surface treatment whether glazing or polishing. All aesthetic restorations should be deglazed whenever any adjustments have been done to maintain the color match and stability in an oral environment. Also, Arabic-Coffee is considered as a staining drink to a limited extend where patient should be assured to maintain their oral health to maintain the colour stability of their restorations.