Dentinal surface roughness: a comparison of tooth preparation techniques.

Standardization of prepared dentinal surfaces for in vitro investigations is needed for evaluation of luting and bonding agents. Forty-eight intact, noncarious human molars were prepared either with silicon carbide paper mounted on a circular grinder or with carbide bur or a diamond mounted in a dental handpiece, and the dentinal surfaces were analyzed in a profilometer for surface roughness. The results were computed with a parametric ANOVA and Student-Newman-Keuls post hoc test. The dentinal surfaces prepared by Brasseler super coarse, coarse, medium, and Premier coarse diamonds by use of a high-speed dental handpiece with water spray were statistically different (p < 0.0001) but closely resembled a dentinal surface prepared by a 60-grit silicon carbide abrasive on a circular grinder. The fine diamonds resembled a prepared dentinal surface similar to a spectrum of SiC papers from 60 to 120 grits, whereas the carbide burs appeared to create various surfaces, depending on the manufacturer.