Abstract
BACKGROUND: The color stability and translucency of contemporary Computer-Aided Design/Computer-Aided Manufacturing (CAD/CAM) glass and hybrid ceramic materials used for minimally invasive laminate veneers remain a clinical concern, particularly after exposure to aging conditions simulating oral service. The purpose of this in vitro study was to investigate the influence of accelerated artificial aging on the color stability and translucency of ceramic laminate veneers fabricated from different glass and hybrid ceramic materials. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 40 composite resin discs (A2 dentin shade, 8.0 mm diameter × 4.0 mm thickness) were fabricated to simulate the normal dentin substrate. They were randomly assigned to four groups (n = 10) according to the ceramic veneering material: (EC) IPS e.max CAD, (CT) Cerec Tessera, (VE) Vita Enamic, and (CS) Cerasmart. Then, 40 disc-shaped ceramic veneers (0.5 mm thickness) were fabricated and adhesively cemented to the substrates. Baseline color and translucency parameters were measured using a digital spectrophotometer. After artificial thermomechanical aging, color differences (ΔE00), using the CIEDE2000 formula and translucency parameter (TP) were calculated. The resulting data were statistically analysed using repeated-measures two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test (material × aging), followed by Post hoc Tukey test for multiple-group comparisons and Paired t-test for within-group comparisons, at p-value ≤ 0.05. RESULTS: Artificial aging significantly affected color stability and translucency for all tested materials (p < 0.001). Glass ceramics (EC and CT) demonstrated lower ΔE₀₀ values within clinically acceptable limits, whereas hybrid ceramics (VE and CS), particularly CS, exhibited significantly higher color changes exceeding acceptability threshold. Translucency significantly decreased after aging for all materials (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Artificial thermomechanical aging adversely affected the optical properties of all tested ceramic laminate veneers. The hybrid ceramic materials, particularly CS, were the most affected by aging in terms of color stability, whereas the glass ceramic materials (EC and CT) exhibited superior color stability. A reduction in translucency was observed for all materials after aging.