Protective effects of cavity liners on dentin.

Smear layers are very soluble in acidic solutions. Removal of smear layers increases dentin permeability and the potential for pulpal irritation. In this study, smear layers were treated with either saline, Barrier, Copalite, LC-Scotchbond, Hydroxyline, or DDS 1 & 2 to determine how well they protected the dentin from subsequent acid attack with 37% phosphoric acid for two minutes. Using both SEM and permeability measurements, the materials were ranked from least to most effective as: Saline less than Barrier = Copalite less than Hydroxyline = Scotchbond = DDS 1 & 2.