Are self-etch adhesives reliable for primary tooth dentin? A systematic review and meta-analysis

The purpose of this study was to systematically evaluate the dentin bond strength of etch-and-rinse and self-etch adhesives to primary teeth. In this study, PubMed, ISI (all databases), Scopus, and Cochrane Database were searched according to the selected keywords up to May 11, 2016. The full texts of published articles that appeared to meet the primary criteria for inclusion in this study were obtained. Due to the variation in the methods used, the studies were divided into 2 groups: Group 1 - studies that evaluated the micro-tensile bond strengths (MTBSs) of two-step etch-and-rinse adhesives and two-step self-etch adhesives and Group 2 - studies that evaluated the MTBSs of two-step etch-and-rinse adhesives and one-step self-etch adhesives. The initial search yielded 1447 publications. After a methodological assessment, 8 publications were selected. The results of this study showed that the MTBS of the etch-and-rinse adhesives and the two-step self-etch adhesives were similar (P = 0.34), and both were significantly higher than that of the one-step self-etch adhesive (P = 0.001). This meta-analysis showed that the application of two-step self-etch adhesives performs well when used for primary dentin and can be used to save time in pediatric dentistry.