A comparison of the shear bond strengths of two glass ionomer cements

The objective of this study was to determine the in vitro shear bond strength (in megapascals) and location of bond failure with two light-cured glass ionomer resin systems. One system was a hybrid glass ionomer cement with resin (GC Orthodontics, Aslip, Ill), and the other system a glass-filled resin system (Reliance Orthodontic Products, Inc, Itasca, Ill). These systems, Fuji Ortho LC (GC Orthodontics) and Ultra Band Lok (Reliance), respectively, were compared to a light-cured composite resin. Maxillary premolar brackets (n = 200) were bonded to the facial surface of human premolar teeth. The two glass ionomer resin systems were each evaluated by two protocols, one according to the manufacturers' direction plus a variation of their respective technique. The five distinct groups (n = 40) were stored in 37 degreesC distilled water for 30 days and subjected to thermocycling before shear bond strength testing. The findings indicated that large variations existed between the bond strengths of the materials tested. The laboratory shear bond strength of the glass-filled resin glass ionomer cement (Reliance), whether tested in a dry or moist field, was similar to the composite control with all of the previous materials being significantly (P <.01) higher than both the hybrid glass ionomer cement groups (Fuji Ortho LC). However, the hybrid glass ionomer cement with enamel conditioner demonstrated a clinically acceptable mean megapascal value. The Adhesive Remnant Index values ranged from 0.53 to 1.62. The hybrid glass ionomer cement without enamel conditioning recorded the lowest mean adhesive remnant index score and the lowest mean megapascal score. Although both products are glass ionomer resin systems, their individual chemistries vary; this affects their clinical performance. Clinically, it may be suggested that glass ionomers used in a dry field may be beneficial for orthodontic bonding, and that glass ionomer resin systems used in a moist environment need an enamel conditioner.