RESUMO
Although variation in finishing techniques has been shown to affect microleakage, little research has been published on the influence of finishing time on the marginal sealing ability of new generation composite bonding systems. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the influence of finishing time on the enamel and dentine marginal sealing ability of four new generation composite systems. Two class V preparations, which were solely in enamel or dentine, were made on the buccal surfaces of 96 freshly extracted molar teeth. The teeth were randomly divided into four groups of 24 and restored with composite resin (Silux Plus) utilizing the following bonding systems: Scotchbond Multi-purpose, Fuji Bond LC, Prime & Bond 2.0 and Bisco One-step. Half of the restorations in each group were finished immediately after light polymerization and stored for 1 week. For the remaining restorations, finishing was delayed for 1 week. The storage medium was isotonic saline at 37 degrees C throughout the experiment. All restorations were then thermocycled, subjected to dye penetration testing, sectioned and scored. The results suggest that the finishing of composite restorations, bonded with the bonding systems evaluated, should be carried out immediately after light polymerization. Delayed finishing does not improve but instead can be detrimental to the marginal seal of the restorations. The effects of delayed finishing are, however, both bonding system and tissue specific.