Antimicrobial action of dental cements

It was observed that some of the cements tested had bacteriostatic and/or bactericidal action. The cements listed in decreasing order of effectiveness are (1) zinc oxide-eugenol, (2) silicophosphate, (3) zinc phosphate, and (4) silicate. The two newer cements, polycarboxylate and composite resin, exhibited no measurable antimicrobial action.