In vitro comparison of the retention capacity of new aesthetic brackets

Tensile bond strength and bond failure location were evaluated in vitro for two types of aesthetic brackets (non-silanated ceramic, polycarbonate) and one stainless steel bracket, using bovine teeth as the substrate and diacrylate resin as the adhesive. The results show that metallic bracket had the highest bond strength (13.21 N) followed by the new plastic bracket (12.01 N), which does not require the use of a primer. The non-silanated ceramic bracket produced the lowest bond strength (8.88 N). Bond failures occurred mainly between bracket and cement, although a small percentage occurred between the enamel-cement interface with the metal and plastic brackets and within the cement for the plastic bracket. With the ceramic bracket all the failures occurred at the bracket-cement interface. This suggests that the problems of enamel lesions produced by this type of bracket may have been eliminated. The results also show that the enamel/adhesive bond is stronger than the adhesive/bracket bond in this in vitro study.