[In vitro study of marginal quality of small approximal composite fillings]

The aim of the study was to compare different preparation methods and filling techniques for class II microcavities in vitro. The following methods were evaluated: Sonicsys halftorpedo, Sonicsys halfsphere, Sonicsys approx, Siplus, Piezo cavity system and rotating finishing bur. Every cavity type was obturated with a flowable (Tetric flow) and with a hybrid composite (Tetric ceram). One group consisted of prefabricated ceramic inlays (Sonicsys approx) and one group was filled with a three-site light curing technique. This resulted in 128 composite fillings. The evaluation of the quality of the margins under the SEM demonstrated a statistically significant higher percentage of perfect margins for Siplus compared with the PCS-System (88% versus 58% perfect margins). Marginal adaptation before and after thermocycling demonstrated the following results: Bewelled margins showed in general better adaptation than box-shaped cavities. Similar results were found for normal and flowable composites. Microcavities with occlusal access prepared with the sonicsys halfsphere showed in general better marginal adaptation in comparison to the other methods tested. It was concluded that simple obturation techniques can lead to a stable adaptation of the margins.