Retentive shear strengths of various bonding attachment bases.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether any of the commercially available attachment bases had significantly better retentive properties. This was determined by their shear strengths after all were bonded to bovine incisors with Auto-Tach. The mean shear strengths of sixteen bases were statistically compared to each other at 24 hours and at 30 days. In addition, the data were converted to pounds per square inch to ascertain if the size of the base significantly influenced the mean shear strength. It was concluded that (1). one of the foil mesh bases tested for shear strength was significantly superior to the two other base designs (indents with undercuts and solid bases with perforations); (2). mechanical retention of the attachment bases to the adhesive was not significantly affected after being placed in distilled water at 37 degrees C. either for 24 hours or for 30 days; (3). smaller foil mesh bases could be used without sacrificing significant shear strength.