Effects of chlorhexidine and povidone-iodine mouth rinses on the bond strength of an orthodontic composite.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the application of two antibacterial mouth rinses to etched and unetched enamel affects the shear bond strength (SBS) of an orthodontic composite resin. Eighty-five lower human incisors were divided into five groups, ie, group 1: control group, no mouth rinse was used; groups 2 and 3: mouth rinses were applied to the intact enamel surface before etching; groups 4 and 5: mouth rinses were applied to the etched enamel. A bonding agent and a composite resin were applied to the teeth surface. For shear bond testing, the specimens were mounted in a universal testing machine, and an apparatus attached to a compression load cell was applied to each specimen until failure occurred. The data were analyzed using analysis of variance and Tukey honestly significance tests. Fracture modes were analyzed by Mann-Whitney U-test. There was no statistically significant difference between the SBS values of group 1 (31.64 +/- 3.62 MPa) and group 4-five experimental applications (P > or = .05). However, the SBS value of group 3 (36.56 +/- 5.95 MPa) was significantly larger than those of group 4 (30.00 +/- 4.97 MPa) and group 5 (30.26 +/- 7.30 MPa). In addition, no significant differences were observed between group 1 and groups 2 (34.33 +/- 7.26 MPa) and 3 (36.56 +/- 5.95 MPa) (P > or = .05). Because the application of chlorhexidine and povidone-iodine before acid etching did not cause any decrease in bond strength, it is advisable for use under the orthodontic resin composite to obtain an antibacterial effect or to prevent the risk of bacteremia.