Effects of salicylic–lactic acid conditioner on the shear bond strength of brackets and enamel surfaces

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of salicylic-lactic (SL) acid conditioner on the shear bond strength of brackets. Fluoride releasing (Light-bond) and non-fluoride releasing (Enlight) composite adhesives were used after conditioning with 0.22% salicylic + 9% lactic acid or 34% phosphoric acid. Composite adhesives were light cured with either a halogen light curing (HLC) unit for 30-50 s or a plasma arc curing (PAC) unit for 4 s. The shear bond strength was measured with an Instron. Failure modes of debonded brackets were identified based on adhesive remnants on the bracket and tooth. Salicylic-lactic acid conditioning was found to provide adequate shear bond strength. Groups conditioned with SL acid were debonded mainly at the enamel-resin interface and comparatively clean enamel surface after debonding was observed than those conditioned with phosphoric acid. Using confocal laser scanning microscopic examinations, it was found that demineralization patterns between SL acid and phosphoric acid conditioned groups were not different when the same adhesive was used. The SL acid conditioner did not reduce the demineralization. Light-bond adhesive showed less demineralization than Enlight adhesive. The PAC unit can be recommended as an alterative to the HLC unit because it significantly reduces the irradiation time.