A wear test method based on a new concept was developed for predicting the wear rate of posterior composite restorations in vivo. The concept based on the conclusions derived from our clinical tests on posterior composites that composite restorations would be deteriorated chemically and by repeated compressive stress as well as by abrasion by food passing during mastication. New wear tests were performed on several posterior restorative materials under various conditions to compare the effect of abrasion using the tooth-brush. The results of wear rate using the present test on specimens stored in a 0.1 N-NaOH solution (37 degrees C) for 6 days were parallel to those measured in clinical tests. However, the abrasion test results obtained using a tooth-brush on deteriorated specimens did not match the clinical data. These findings suggested that degradation or aging of specimens and repeated compressive stress are necessary for the wear test to simulate the wear of posterior composites in vivo.