Bonding performance of different adhesive systems to deproteinized dentin: microtensile bond strength and scanning electron microscopy.

Deproteinization has been shown to optimize dentin bonding, but differences in adhesive composition should be considered. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of dentin deproteinization on microtensile bond strength (microTBS) of four total-etch adhesive systems (Single Bond/SB, Prime & Bond NT/PB, One Coat Bond/OC, and PQ1/PQ). The ultrastructure of the resin-dentin interfaces was also examined using scanning electron microscopy. Tukey's multiple-comparison tests indicated that PB and PQ produced significantly higher microTBS (p<0.05) after dentin deproteinization (PB=61.53 MPa, PQ=58.18 MPa). This treatment provided statistically lower results for SB (39.08 MPa), but the microTBS of OC to dentin was unaffected by dentin deproteinization. The bonding performance on deproteinized dentin surfaces depended on the characteristics of each adhesive system, as well as the adhesive dentin specificity to the oxidant effect of sodium hypochlorite. Incorporation of fillers in the adhesive, a possible self-etching action, and the presence of a volatile solvent (acetone) were the main factors for a better union between the adhesive system and deproteinized substrate. (c) 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2005.