A new premixed self-etch adhesive for bonding orthodontic brackets.

OBJECTIVE

To determine if a new premixed self-etch adhesive can be used to successfully bond orthodontic brackets to enamel.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Forty human molars were cleaned, mounted, and randomly divided into two groups. In group 1, 20 teeth were conditioned using the self-etching primer Transbond Plus (3M Unitek, Monrovia, Calif). In group 2, 20 teeth were conditioned using a new premixed self-etching adhesive, AdheSE One (Ivoclar Vivadent Inc, Amherst, NY). Both groups were bonded using brackets precoated with a composite adhesive. The teeth were debonded within half an hour following initial bonding using a universal testing machine. After debonding, the enamel surface was examined under 10x magnifications to determine the amount of residual adhesive remaining on the tooth. A Student's t-test was used to compare the shear bond strength (SBS) of the two groups, and the Chi-square test was used to compare the adhesive remnant index (ARI) scores for the two adhesive systems.

RESULTS

The mean SBS of the brackets bonded to the teeth using AdhesSE One was 3.6 +/- 1.3 MPa and was significantly lower (t = 2.80, P = .01) than the SBS of the brackets bonded using Transbond Plus (x = 5.9 +/- 3.2 MPa). The comparisons of the ARI scores between the two groups (chi2 = 19.26) indicated that bracket failure mode was also significantly different (P < .001), with more adhesive remaining on the teeth bonded using Transbond Plus.

CONCLUSIONS

The SBS of the new premixed self-etching adhesive needs to be increased for it to be successfully used for bonding orthodontic brackets.