Titanium plates treated in vitro with a mouthwash containing amine fluoride (100 ppm F-) and another containing zinc-substituted carbonate-hydroxyapatite have been analyzed by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy to evaluate the modification of the surface roughness induced by treatment with these two different mouthwashes. The treatment with F--based mouthwash produces a roughness characterized by higher peaks and deeper valleys in the streaks on the titanium bracket surface compared with those observed in the reference polished titanium plates. This effect causes a mechanical weakness in the metallic dental implant causing bacterial growth and therefore promotes infection and prosthesis contamination. However, the in vitro treatment with a mouthwash containing zinc-substituted carbonate-hydroxyapatite reduced the surface roughness by filling the streaks with an apatitic phase. This treatment counteracts the surface oxidative process that can affect the mechanical behavior of the titanium dental implant, which inhibits the bacterial growth contaminating prostheses.
Keywords: aminic fluoride; corrosion; hydroxyapatite; mouthwash; titanium brackets.