Comparative Evaluation of Microleakage of Three Fluoride Releasing Sealants

Objective:

To compare the marginal sealing ability of three commercially available fluoride releasing sealants based on depth of dye penetration using Stereomicroscope.

Methods:

Sixty non-carious human molars and premolars were selected and divided into three equal groups (seven molars and thirteen premolars) for every sealant. The sealants used were (i) Glass ionomer cement (Fuji VII, GC), (ii) Clinpro (3M, ESPE) and (iii) Helioseal-F (Ivoclar, Vivadent).

All the sealants were applied on to their respective samples as per the manufacturer's instructions. Teeth were then subjected to thermocycling of 200 cycles and immersed in 2% fuschin dye for 24 hours. After cleaning and sectioning buccolingually, teeth were assessed under stereomicroscope.

Results:

1. There was no microleakage in any of the samples of glass ionomer cement group.

2. Mean depth of dye penetration for Clinpro group and Helioseal-F group were 0.098mm and 0.245mm respectively and the difference was statistically significant.

3. There was no statistically significant difference in dye penetration between premolars and molars within any of the sealant groups.

Conclusion:

Microleakage was not found with glass ionomer cements. Routine placement of bonding agents can be recommended for all resin based sealant applications for better results.