Shear Bond Strength of Self-Adhesive Versus Conventional Flowable Composites: An In Vitro Study

Area of Science:

• Dental Materials Science
• Adhesive Dentistry
• Biomaterials Engineering

Background:

• Self-adhesive flowable composites (SAFCs) are an emerging dental material.
• Their bonding efficacy to permanent dentin requires thorough evaluation.
• Understanding SAFC performance is crucial for advancing restorative dentistry.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the shear bond strength of two SAFCs.
• To compare the bonding of SAFCs with a conventional flowable composite (CFC) to permanent dentin.

Main Methods:

• Thirty-six teeth were prepared, exposing dentin surfaces.
• Dentin was treated with two different SAFCs or a conventional system (etch+bond+composite).
• Shear bond strength was measured using a universal testing machine and analyzed statistically.

Main Results:

• Filtek Z350 XT (3M ESPE) exhibited significantly higher shear bond strength than Constic (DMG) and Axo Uni Flow (AXIMACK).
• No significant difference in shear bond strength was observed between the two SAFCs.
• SAFCs demonstrated inferior shear bond strength compared to the CFC group.

Conclusions:

• SAFCs show lower shear bond strength to permanent dentin compared to conventional flowable composites.
• The tested SAFCs have comparable bonding performance to each other.
• Further research is needed to optimize SAFC formulations for improved dentin adhesion.