Bond strength of orthodontic adhesives to dry and saliva-moistened enamel a comparative in vitro study

Purpose: To compare the bond strengths of six different dental adhesives to dry and salivamoistened enamel. Design/methodology/approach: One hundred twenty stainless steel brackets were bonded to human mandibular third molars with six materials: Enlight LC® (Ormco Corp), Grengloo® (Ormco Corp), Light Bond® (Reliance Orthodontic Products), Charisma® (Heraeus Kulzer), SmartBond® (Gestenco), and Transbond XT® with MIP® primer (3M Unitek). One half of the specimens in each group (n=10) was bonded to dry enamel, while the other half to saliva-moistened enamel. Bond strength testing was performed with a wire loop loading technique after 30-min incubation in artificial saliva. Failure mode was evaluated using adhesive remaining index (ARI). Findings: No significant differences in bond strength to dry enamel were noted for all composite materials (p>0.05). SmartBond exhibited significantly greater bond strength to moistened enamel (7.10 ± 1.47 MPa) and comparable with other composite materials to dry enamel. Composite materials demonstrated significantly reduced bond strength to saliva-moistened enamel (p<0.001), except for Transbond MIP, whose bond strength was not significantly decreased by saliva contamination (p=0.089). There was not statistically significant difference between bond strength of SmartBond and Transbond to saliva contaminated enamel. A higher incidence of cohesive failures was noted for all materials. Research limitations/implications: Composite light-cured materials provide adequate bond strength to dry enamel. Cyanoacrylate adhesive provides sufficient bond strength only under moist conditions. Transbond XT+MIP has sufficient bond strength to either dry or saliva-moistened enamel. Practical implications: The study evaluated the bonding strength of orthodontic brackets, which is a critical parameter in orthodontics, especially in situations that do not allow for proper isolation from saliva, such as bonding to impacted teeth following surgical exposure. Originality/value: Bond strengths evaluated with loop loading technique in different study environments would help the orthodontist to choose the most effective adhesive for the specific clinical situation.