COMPARATIVE SEM EVALUATION OF ETCHING PATTERNS USING ETCHANT GEL AND SOLUTION – AN INVITRO STUDY
Dr. Shilpa A.*, Dr. Saravanakumar M. S., Dr. Anjana G., Dr. B. Muralikrishnan, Dr. Vidya Manoharan, Dr. Amrutha Joy
ABSTRACT
Background: Etching of the enamel surface improves the bond strength was first introduced by Bunocore in 1955. Over the years, a lot of developments have occurred in the etching time and the materials used. Nowadays, etchants are available in both gel form and solution. Both the form of etchant claim to provide better bond strength than the other. The aim of this study is to compare and evaluate the etching pattern of two commercially available gel and solution etchants using SEM. Materials and methods: Twenty mandibular first premolars extracted for orthodontic purpose were included in the study. The selected teeth will be divided into two groups. One group will be etched with etchant solution and the other with etchant gel. On completion of the etching procedure, the teeth will be desiccated and coated with gold – palladium in preparation for examination under SEM to observe the etching pattern. Results: In Group A samples treated with 37% phosphoric acid gel – EAZETCH gel shows Type II etching pattern and in Group B samples treated with 37% phosphoric acid solution – 3M solution shows Type I etching pattern. Conclusion: Findings of the present investigation revealed that 3M solution provided more uniformity in the etching pattern compared to that of EAZETCH gel and from this it can be concluded that etchant in the form of solution will be more effective than etchant in the form of gel.
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