Solvent content and dentin bond strengths using water-wet, ethanol-wet and deproteinization bonding techniques.

Objectives: To evaluate the impact of solvent content in two-step, etch-and-rinse adhesives on the dentin bond strengths obtained via water-wet, ethanol-wet or deproteinization techniques.

Materials And Methods: A model photocurable Bis-GMA/HEMA blend was diluted in ethanol (7.5, 15 or 30 mass%) or acetone (15, 30 or 60 mass%) (low, medium or high solvent content, respectively). Viscosity of the solutions was measured with an oscillatory viscometer and data analyzed using ANOVA on Ranks (5%). Dentin bond strengths were evaluated using microshear bond test. After acid-etching and rinsing, the dentin was kept wet (water-wet), treated with ascending ethanol concentrations (ethanol-wet) or with 10% NaOCl solution (deproteinization). Composite cylinders built-up on the surfaces for the microshear test. Data from each bonding technique were submitted to two-way ANOVA and Fisher's LSD method (5%). Failure modes were classified under magnification and data analyzed using chi-square tests (5%).

Results: Viscosity of ethanol-based agents was remarkably higher than acetone solutions. For the water-wet technique, lower bond strength was observed for the low compared with medium and high ethanol contents. For the ethanol-wet technique, the bond strength for both solvents types was low < medium = high solvent content. For the deproteinization technique, no significant differences were observed among groups. Significant differences in failure modes were observed between the bonding techniques. The ethanol-wet technique had more adhesive failures, whereas the other techniques showed a predominance of mixed failures.

Conclusions: The solvent content may interfere with the dentin bond strengths for the conventional and ethanol bonding techniques.