A randomized, controlled trial evaluating the three-year clinical effectiveness of two etch & rinse adhesives in cervical lesions.

A three-year randomized, controlled prospective study evaluated the clinical performance of two three-step etch & rinse adhesives (OptiBond FL, Kerr: O-FL; PermaQuick, Ultradent: PMQ) in Class V cervical erosion-abrasion lesions. The latter adhesive was also tested with two restorative composites with contrasting stiffness in order to evaluate the effect composite stiffness might have on the clinical longevity of cervical restorations. A total of 150 lesions were randomly restored in pairs of the three adhesive/composite combinations (PMQ combined with Amelogen Hybrid: PMQ/A-Hy, Ultradent; PMQ combined with Amelogen Microfill: PMQ/A-Mi, Ultradent; O-FL combined with Prodigy: O-FLJPro, Kerr) per patient and evaluated at baseline, after six months, one year, two years and three years of clinical service. After three years, the retention rate was 100% for O-FL/Pro and 98% for both PMQ/A-Hy and PMQ/A-Mi, thereby, satisfying the "full acceptance" guidelines specified by the American Dental Association. A pairwise comparison showed no significant difference in adhesive performance between restorations made using the microfilled and hybrid composite for any evaluation criteria (p>0.05).