The influence of temporary cements on dental adhesive systems for luting cementation

Objective: This study tested the hypothesis that bond strength of total- and self-etching adhesive systems to dentine is not affected by the presence of remnants from either eugenol-containing (EC) or eugenol-free (EF) temporary cements after standardized cleaning procedures. Methods: Thirty non-carious human third molars were polished flat to expose dentine surfaces. Provisional acrylic plates were fabricated and cemented either with EC, EF or no temporary cements. All specimens were incubated for 7 days in water at 37 °C. The restorations were then taken out and the remnants of temporary cements were mechanically removed with a dental instrument. The dentine surfaces were cleaned with pumice and treated with either total-etching (TE) or self-etching (SE) dental adhesive systems. Atomic force microscopy was used to examine the presence of remnants of temporary cements before and after dentine cleaning procedures. Composite resin build-ups were fabricated and cemented to the bonded dentine surfaces with a resin luting cement. The specimens were then sectioned to obtain 0.9 mm² beams for microtensile bond strength testing. Fractographic analysis was performed by optical and scanning electron microscopy. Results: ANOVA showed lower mean microtensile bond strength in groups of specimens treated with EC temporary cement than in groups treated with either no cement or an EF cement (p < 0.05). Mean microtensile bond strength was lower in groups employing the SE rather than the TE adhesive system (p < 0.001). SE samples were also more likely to fail during initial processing of the samples. There was no evidence of interaction between cement and adhesive system effects on tensile strength. Fractographic analysis indicated different primary failure modes for SE and TE bonding systems, at the dentine-adhesive interface and at the resin cement-resin composite interface, respectively. Conclusion: The use of eugenol-containing temporary cements prior to indirect bonding restorations reduce, to a statistically similar extent, the bond strength of both total- and self-etching adhesive systems to dentine.