An Evaluation of Er:YAG Laser in an Intact Enamel Treatment on Bonding to the Resin Cement Compared to Four Traditional Techniques

Abstract

Evaluation of the bond strength of the resin cement after enamel conditioning with erbium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet laser compared to other four different techniques. The study consisted of 50 enamel specimens excluded from the smooth surfaces of newly extracted human 3rd molars. The specimens were randomly divided into five groups in terms of the enamel treatment technique. Each group (n = 10) was conditioned differently by bevel and acid etching group (I), acid etching technique group (II), double acid etching technique group (III), air abrasion followed by acid etching group (IV), and Er:YAG laser followed by acid etching group (V). After enamel treatment, a resin cylinder was installed using split Teflon matrix on each enamel specimen. Then the specimens were exposed to a shear strength device, and shear force was applied. The results were recorded with Newton. The required data were collected and statistically analyzed. A one-way ANOVA test was conducted to compare the five study groups using SPSS version 21 (p < 0.05). All groups showed high shear bond strength values ranging from 19.26 MPa (for group III) to 27.05 MPa (for group V). The enamel treatment with Er:YAG laser followed by acid etching gave the best results with significant differences compared to the other groups. Within the limitations of the present study, it can be concluded that the combination between the Er:YAG laser and the acid etching enhances the bond strength of resin cement with the enamel. The use of Er:YAG laser followed by acid etching can be a successful technique for enamel conditioning and the results showed their superiority over the other groups.