Effect of Ferrule Location with Varying Heights on Fracture Resistance and Failure Mode of Restored Endodontically Treated Maxillary Incisors

Purpose To investigate the effect of the location of a partial ferrule on 2 walls and the influence of ferrule height variations on remaining walls, fracture resistance, and failure mode of maxillary incisors endodontically treated and restored with fiber posts. Materials and Methods Sixty intact human maxillary central incisors were divided into 6 groups (n = 10): no ferrule (NF), 2-mm ferrule (CF2), absence of lingual wall and 1 proximal wall with remaining walls' height, 1 mm (IF1), 2 mm (IF2), 3 mm (IF3), and 4 mm (IF4). They were restored with a fiberglass post and composite resin core. Complete metal crowns were then cemented on all specimens. Completed specimens were subjected to thermal cycling (6000 cycles, 5 degrees C/55 degrees C) followed by the immediate testing of fracture resistance. After failure, the specimens were sectioned buccolingually and evaluated to identify the mode of failure. The data were analyzed with an ANOVA and the Student-Newman-Keuls multiple comparison tests (alpha = 0.05). Results An incomplete ferrule (IF2) with the lingual wall missing and 1 proximal wall had a fracture resistance of 494 +/- 137 N, which was significantly less that of a complete ferrule (CF2) (707 +/- 162 N, p = 0.002). An increase of 3 to 4 mm in height of the remaining walls had negligible influence on the fracture resistance: 514 +/- 117 N (IF3), 557 +/- 177 N (IF4). Partial decementation was observed in all specimens of IF3 and IF4, in 9 of IF1 and IF2, in 6 in NF, and in 3 in CF2. Root fractures occurred in 7 specimens, 4 in CF2, 1 in IF1, 1 in IF2, and 1 in IF4. Cracks under the cemento-enamel junction occurred in 4 specimens (NF and IF1), in 5 (IF2 and IF3), and in 6 (CF2 and IF4) and were considered catastrophic failures. Conclusions Specimens with a complete ferrule of 2 mm height were more resistant to fracture than specimens with 2 mm height and absence of the lingual wall and 1 proximal wall. A 3 or 4 mm wall height increase was associated with an insignificant increase in fracture resistance and cannot compensate for the absence of the lingual wall and 1 proximal wall.