A two-year clinical evaluation of pit and fissure sealants placed with and without air abrasion pretreatment in teenagers.

Background: Long-term retention of pit and fissure sealants is essential for their success. The aim of this study was to compare the retention rates of sealants placed with acid-etching and air abrasion followed by acid etching.

Methods: Sixteen subjects aged 16 and 17 years were included in the study. Using a half-mouth design, the authors performed fissure preparation with phosphoric acid gel on randomly assigned maxillary and mandibular permanent premolars and molars from one side of the mouth (Group I) and performed air abrasion followed by acid etching on the contralateral side of the mouth (Group II). The authors applied sealant material on 162 teeth, and they evaluated the sealants as complete retention, partial loss or total loss at six, 12 and 24 months.

Results: While fissure sealant retention rates were not significantly different for the two techniques at six months (P = .97), the retention rates for the teeth in Group II were significantly higher at 12 (P = .025) and 24 months (P = .002). Molar retention rates were significantly less than those for premolars at each evaluation period (P < .05).

Conclusion: The sealant retention rates at 12 and 24 months were higher in Group II (air abrasion followed by acid etching).

Clinical Implications: As air abrasion followed by acid etching resulted in significantly higher sealant retention rates, this method could be a good choice for fissure preparation before sealant placement for long-term success.