Effect of adhesive application on the shear bond strength of flowable composite resins and APC plus to orthodontic molar tubes

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the effect of adhesive application on the shear bond strength (SBS) of orthodontic tubes to acid-etched human enamel when using different flowable composite resins and the APC Plus system (APC). Study design: One hundred metal tubes were bonded to human third molars, which were randomly divided into five groups: Tetric EvoFlow (TF); Wave mv Flow (W); Transbond Supreme LV (S); Transbond XT (XT); and APC. For each experimental group, half of the specimens were bonded in combination with Transbond XT adhesive. After 72 h, an SBS test was performed using a universal testing machine. Two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was run for multiple comparison tests and for comparing the mean SBS among the 10 subgroups to evaluate the effect of both the composite and the adhesive factors. Then, a Student-Newman-Keuls test was used for pairwise comparisons using the highest mean SBS group as reference. Adhesive Remnant Index scores were determined for the teeth after failure and compared by χ 2-test. Two representative molar surfaces from the 10 subgroups were assessed under scanning electron microscope. Results: The application of adhesive did not have a significant effect, but there was a marked tendency toward the influence of the factor composite on SBS. The mean SBS of tubes bonded with XT with adhesive was significantly higher than that of those bonded with APC with adhesive, TF with and without adhesive, and S with adhesive. Conclusion: Flowable composites and the APC system without intermediate bonding resin could be conveniently applied for orthodontic tube bonding.