Chlorhexidine diminishes the loss of bond strength over time under simulated pulpal pressure and thermo-mechanical stressing.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of chlorhexidine (CHX) digluconate at 0.2% and 2% on dentin bonding durability of etch-and-rinse and self-etch adhesive systems. METHODS: In this study were used 24 extracted non-carious human third-molars. The occlusal surfaces of the molar crowns were removed with a low-speed diamond saw to expose flat dentin surfaces. The tested materials were Single-Bond (SB) (two-step etch-and-rinse adhesive) and Clearfil Tri S Bond (CTSB) (all-in-one self-etch adhesive) used in association or not with CHX at 0.2% and 2%. The bonding systems were applied according to manufacturer's instructions and followed by composite application (Z250). For each condition, half of the specimens was immediately submitted to microtensile test and half of them was submitted to long-term storage of 6 months under simulated pulpal pressure and thermo-mechanical stressing before testing. The data were analyzed using Two-Way ANOVA and Tukey post hoc test (alpha=0.05). Failure patterns of the specimens were observed using scanning electron microscopy. RESULTS: The falling % in bond strength over the 6-month period was: SB control-43.64%; SB/0.2%CHX-23.79%; SB/2%CHX-26.42%; CTSB control-40.94%; CTSB/0.2%CHX-37.07%; CTSB/2%CHX-22.14%. The fracture modes were predominantly adhesive, mainly in the specimens of terminal groups. CONCLUSIONS: CXH digluconate at 2% was able to diminish loss of microtensile bond strength over time associated to both etch-and-rinse and self-etch adhesives. Lower concentration of CHX (0.2%) was not able to diminish the loss of bond strength over time when associated to the self-etch adhesive CTSB.

Flexibility of K3 and ProTaper universal instruments.

This study used a mechanical test to evaluate the flexibility of instruments from the K3 (conicity 0.04) and the ProTaper Universal systems when they were new and after 5 uses in simulated canals. Five sets of instruments of each system were tested: K3 (15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45) and ProTaper Universal (S1, S2, F1, F2, F3, F4 and F5). Each set of instruments was used to prepare a simulated canal and the same set of instruments was used 5 times (50 canals). The number of each subgroup represented the number of uses: 0 (control), 1, 3 and 5 uses. Before and after each use, the instruments were submitted to a mechanical flexibility test performed in a Versat 502 universal testing machine. Interactions between the instrument and the number of uses were analyzed by ANOVA and Tukey's test at a 5% level of significance. Instruments from both systems presented lower flexibility after the third use compared to the flexibility obtained after uses 0 and 1 (p<0.05), and maintained the same flexibility after the fifth use. The flexibility of instruments from the K3 system decreased with the increase of diameter, irrespective of the number of uses. Among the instruments from the ProTaper Universal system, the shaping files presented greater flexibility than the finishing files. F2 and F3 were the least flexible instruments, and F4 and F5 presented flexibility values similar to those of F1.

Flexibility of K3 and ProTaper universal instruments

This study used a mechanical test to evaluate the flexibility of instruments from the K3 (conicity 0.04) and the ProTaper Universal systems when they were new and after 5 uses in simulated canals. Five sets of instruments of each system were tested: K3 (15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45) and ProTaper Universal (S1, S2, F1, F2, F3, F4 and F5). Each set of instruments was used to prepare a simulated canal and the same set of instruments was used 5 times (50 canals). The number of each subgroup represented the number of uses: 0 (control), 1, 3 and 5 uses. Before and after each use, the instruments were submitted to a mechanical flexibility test performed in a Versat 502 universal testing machine. Interactions between the instrument and the number of uses were analyzed by ANOVA and Tukey's test at a 5 percent level of significance. Instruments from both systems presented lower flexibility after the third use compared to the flexibility obtained after uses 0 and 1 (p<0.05), and maintained the same flexibility after the fifth use. The flexibility of instruments from the K3 system decreased with the increase of diameter, irrespective of the number of uses. Among the instruments from the ProTaper Universal system, the shaping files presented greater flexibility than the finishing files. F2 and F3 were the least flexible instruments, and F4 and F5 presented flexibility values similar to those of F1.

Esta pesquisa estudou a flexibilidade de instrumentos do Sistema K3 (conicidade 0.04) e do Sistema ProTaper Universal, por meio de um teste mecânico, quando os instrumentos eram novos e após 5 usos em canais simulados. Cinco jogos de instrumentos de cada sistema foram testados, como segue: grupo I - K3 (15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 e 45), e grupo II - ProTaper Universal (S1, S2, F1, F2, F3, F4 e F5). Cada jogo de instrumento foi usado para preparar um canal simulado, e o mesmo jogo de instrumento foi usado 5 vezes (50 canais). O número de cada subgrupo representou o número de usos: 0 (controle), 1, 3 e 5 usos. Antes do uso e depois de cada uso os instrumentos foram submetidos a um teste mecânico de flexibilidade realizado na máquina de ensaios universais Versat 502. A interação entre o instrumento e o número de usos foi analisada pelo ANOVA e pelo teste de Tukey ao nível de significância 5 por cento. Instrumentos de ambos os sistemas apresentaram menor flexibilidade após o terceiro uso quando comparada com a flexibilidade após os usos 0 e 1 (p<0,05), e mantiveram a mesma flexibilidade após o quinto uso. A flexibilidade dos instrumentos do sistema K3 diminuiu conforme o aumento de diâmetro, independente do número de usos. Entre os instrumentos do sistema ProTaper Universal, os shaping apresentaram maior flexibilidade que os finishing. F2 e F3 foram os menos flexíveis e F4 e F5 apresentaram valores de flexibilidade similares ao F1.