Microleakage of amalgam restorations using Amalgambond and Copalite

This study compared the effect of using either Amalgambond as a cavity liner or Copalite in the reduction of microleakage in amalgam Class V restorations. Both retentive traditional and non-retentive cavity preparations were compared with gingival cavosurface margin locations both in enamel and in dentin. Cavity preparations were restored with their appropriate liner, thermocycled, and stored in erythrosin red stain for 10 days. The samples were then sectioned and degrees of microleakage determined. Statistical interpretation with the Wilcoxon test showed that microleakage was significantly greater (alpha = 0.05) with the non-traditional cavity design and with cavity margins located in dentin. The results also showed that Amalgambond as a cavity liner significantly reduced microleakage when compared to Copalite.