Six-month bracket failure rate evaluation of a self-etching primer

Area of Science:

• Orthodontic Materials Science
• Dental Adhesion Research
• Clinical Dentistry

Background:

• Conventional two-step etch and primer (CM) methods are standard for orthodontic bracket bonding.
• Self-etching primers (SEP) offer a potentially simplified alternative.
• Evaluating clinical performance and chair time is crucial for material selection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the clinical performance of a self-etching primer (SEP) versus a conventional method (CM) for orthodontic bracket bonding.
• To evaluate and compare the chair time required for bonding using both SEP and CM.
• To assess bracket failure rates, survival rates, and bond failure interface.

Main Methods:

• Randomized, split-mouth clinical trial involving 37 patients and 672 bracket bonds.
• One operator used either SEP (Transbond Plus) or CM (Transbond XT) for bracket placement.
• Failure rates, survival rates (Kaplan-Meier), adhesive remnant index (ARI), and chair time were analyzed.

Main Results:

• Both SEP and CM showed low failure rates (0.6%) with no significant differences between procedures, arches, or gender.
• Premolar brackets had higher failure and lower survival rates compared to incisors and canines.
• SEP significantly reduced mean bracket bonding time per tooth compared to CM (P < 0.001).

Conclusions:

• Self-etching primer (Transbond Plus) demonstrates effective clinical performance and a high survival rate for orthodontic bracket bonding.
• SEP offers a significant chair time advantage over conventional methods.
• SEP is a viable and efficient alternative for orthodontic bracket adhesion.