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Published on: July 8, 2025
Influence of prolonged setting time on permanent deformation of elastomeric impression materials
Markus Balkenhol1, Sylvia Haunschild, Christina Erbe
1Department of Prosthodontics, Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany. markus.balkenhol@dentist.med.uni-giessen.de <markus.balkenhol@dentist.med.uni-giessen.de>
Statement Of Problem:
Upon removal, tear forces occur in various areas of an impression. As a result, thin sulcus details may be permanently deformed, affecting the impression's accuracy.
Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the chemistry and prolonged setting time on the permanent deformation of light-body impression materials after stretching.
Material And Methods:
A dumbbell-shaped mold (2 mm x 4 mm x 75 mm) was used to prepare specimens (n=20) of 6 different impression materials (Affinis Light Body, Aquasil Ultra XLV, Express 2 Light Body Flow Quick, Flexitime Correct Flow, P2 Polyether Light, and Impregum Garant L DuoSoft). After water storage (35 degrees C), either for the manufacturer's suggested setting time or for 5 minutes, specimens were stretched by 80% using a universal testing machine at a crosshead speed of 200 mm/min. The permanent deformation (Deltal (%)) was determined after 2 hours of storage in ambient conditions. A 2-way ANOVA followed by a Games-Howell test was used to analyze the influence of material and storage time (alpha=.05).
Results:
Polyether materials showed a significantly higher permanent deformation (Deltal>4% to 5%) than vinyl polysiloxane materials (P<.05). Extending the manufacturer's suggested setting time resulted in clinically relevant improvements in elastic recovery for products with a polyether backbone only.
Conclusions:
Increasing the setting time might be necessary for impression materials with a polyether backbone to improve elastic recovery.
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