In vivo bracket bond strength using two adhesive systems applied under wet and dry conditions

The purpose of this study was to investigate, in vivo, the bond strength of two adhesive materials: a moisture insensitive primer (MIP)* and a one step self etching primer (SEP)*, both used with Transbond XT* on dry and wet enamel and an adhesion time of 10-15 minutes. First or second upper and/or lower bicuspids (n = 124), to be extracted for orthodontic reasons, were used. A comparison of the materials' behavior was conducted under four different situations: 1) MIP on enamel etched and dry; 2) MIP on a surface etched and wetted with patient's saliva; 3) SEP on a dry field, 4) SEP on a saliva-wet enamel. For statistical analysis, Dunn-Sidak's multiple comparison test was applied with a probability of less than 0.05 (before correction). Stainless steel brackets with mesh-backed pads were bonded to the teeth. Bond strength was tested with modified orthodontic pliers on which a strain-gage was fixed to measure handle deformation while debonding. Moisture insensitive primer tested on wet enamel showed the highest mean bond strength outcomes (8.98 MPa) compared to one step etching primer (5.81 MPa). Statistical difference between these groups was significant (p = 0.000). Standard deviation was lower for the one-step technique, under dry and wet conditions. Since the media bond strength of SEP proved sufficient for clinical purposes and its behavior tended to be more homogeneous, this was considered the best choice.