Shear strength of composites bonded to Er:YAG laser prepared surfaces

The treatment of dental tissues prior to adhesive restorative procedures is an extremely important step in the bonding protocol and accounts for the clinical success of restorations. Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of Er:YAG laser on the shear bond strength (SBS) of different adhesive restorative systems to non-irradiated and irradiated enamel and dentin surfaces. Materials and Methods: 104 tooth slabs including mesial or distal surfaces were attained through dividing the teeth and than embedded in the acrylic resin. All specimens were randomly assigned to two main groups: enamel and dentin (n=52) Each main group were subdivided into 4 groups (n=13). G(1): Er:YAG laser (ER) + Xeno V (XV) + Esthet X (EX) G(2): ER + AdheSE One (AD) + Tetric EvoCeram (TE) G(3): XV + EX G(4): AD + TE After all of the specimens had been stored in distilled water and had undergone thermocycling, the SBS of all specimens were determined with a universal testing machine and the data were analyzded statistically by Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: The highest SBS values were obtained in G(2) in dentin (p<0.001).The ranking of mean SBS values in dentin was as follows: G(2)>G(4)>G(1)>G(3).In enamel the highest SBS values were observed in G (1) but there were no significant difference with G(3) (p>0.001). The ranking of mean SBS values in enamel was as follows: G(1)≥G(3)>G(2)>G(4). Conclusion: It may be concluded that enamel and dentin surfaces prepared with ER:YAG laser may provide comparable composite resin bond strength depending on the adhesive used.