Effect of veneering materials and curing methods on resin cement knoop hardness

Effect of lithium disilicate ceramic thickness, shade and translucency on transmitted irradiance and knoop microhardness of a light cured luting resin cement

This in vitro study evaluates the influence of pressed lithium disilicate thickness, shade and translucency on the transmitted irradiance and the Knoop microhardness (KHN) of a light-cured resin cement at two depths. One hundred and thirty-five ceramic discs of IPS e.max Press (Ivoclar Vivadent) were fabricated and divided into twenty-seven groups (n = 5) according to the association between translucency: HT (hight translucency), LT (low translucency), and MO (medium opacity); shade: BL2, A1 and A3.5; and thickness: 0.5 mm, 1.5 mm, and 2.0 mm. One side of each ceramic disc was finished, polished and glazed. The irradiance (mW/cm²) of a multiwave LED light curing unit (Valo, Ultradent) was evaluated with a potentiometer (Ophir 10ª-V2-SH, Ophir Optronics) without (control group) or with interposition of ceramic samples. The microhardness of Variolink Esthetic LC resin cement (Ivoclar Vivadent) was evaluated after 24 h at two depths (100 μm and 700 μm). Data were submitted to ANOVA followed by Tukey's test (α = 0.05). Irradiance and KHN were significantly influenced by ceramic thickness (p < 0.0001), shade (p < 0.001), translucency (p < 0.0001) and depth (p < 0.0001). Conclusions: the interposition of increasing ceramic thicknesses significantly reduced the irradiance and microhardness of resin cement. Increased depth in the resin cement showed significantly reduced microhardness for all studied groups. Increased ceramic opacity reduced the KHN of the resin cement at both depths for all ceramic thicknesses and shades.

An in vitro study to compare the influence of different all-ceramic systems on the polymerization of dual-cure resin cement

Aim:

The aim of the study is to compare the effect of composition of three different all-ceramic systems on the polymerization of dual-cure resin cement, using different curing cycles and evaluated immediately within 15 min and after 24 h.

Materials and Methods:

Resin cement disc samples were fabricated by polymerization through three different all-ceramic disc, namely: lithium disilicate discs – IPS e.max (Group B), leucitereinforced discs – IPS Empress (Group C), zirconia discs – Cercon (Group D), and without an intervening ceramic disc, as control (Group A). A total of 80 resin cement disc samples were fabricated for fur groups (n = 20). Each group further consisted of two subgroups (n = 10), t10 and t20 according to two different exposure times of 10 and 20 s, respectively. Each of the 80 resin disc samples was evaluated for their degree of polymerization achieved, by measuring the microhardness(Vickers hardness number) of the samples immediately within 15 min and after 24 h, giving us a total of 160 readings. Oneway analysis of variance test, ttest, and paired ttest were used for multiple group comparisons followed by Tukey's post hoc for groupwise comparison.

Results:

Direct activation of the resin cement samples of control (Group A) showed statistically significant higher mean microhardness values followed by Groups C then B and D, both immediately and after 24 h. The mean microhardness for immediate post-activation was always inferior to the 24 h post-activation test. For both 10 and 20 s curing cycle, there was a significant increase in the microhardness of the resin cement discs cured for 20 s through the different ceramics.

Conclusion:

Ceramic composition affected the polymerization of dual cured resin cement. Doubling the light irradiation time or curing cycle significantly increased mean microhardness value. Greater degree of conversion leading to an increase in hardness was observed when the resin cement discs were evaluated after 24 h.

Indirect Restoration Thickness and Time after Light-Activation Effects on Degree of Conversion of Resin Cement

<p>This study evaluated the effects of indirect restorative materials, curing conditions and time on the degree of conversion (DC) of a dual-cured resin cement using infrared spectroscopy. The resin cement (RelyX Unicem 2, 3M ESPE) was applied to the diamond surface of a horizontal attenuated-total-reflectance unit and activated using one of following conditions: self-cure, direct light exposure, light exposure through indirect restorative materials (resin nano-ceramic: Lava Ultimate, 3M ESPE or feldspathic ceramic: Vita Blocks Mark II, Vita Zahnfabrik). Four thicknesses (0.5, 1.0, 1.5 or 2.0 mm) of each indirect material were analyzed, and the light-activation was performed using a blue LED light. Data (n=5) were analyzed by three-way ANOVA, Tukey's post hoc and Dunnett's tests (α=5%). No significant differences in DC were observed between indirect materials of similar thickness. All groups exhibited higher DC after 10 min than after 5 min. At both times points, the self-cure group exhibited significantly lower DC than all the light exposure groups. Only when the overlying indirect restoration had a thickness of 2 mm did DC decrease significantly. The presence of a thick, indirect restoration can decrease the DC of resin cement. DC after 10 min was higher than after 5 min. The self-cure mode yielded lower DC than the light-activating one.</p>

Polymerization efficiency of two dual-cure cements through dental ceramics

Purpose:

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of thickness of zirconia on curing efficiency of resin cements.

Materials and Methods:

Four discs with 4.0 mm in diameter were prepared from non-HIP translucent zirconia blocks using a CAD/CAM system and feldspathic ceramic was layered onto discs. Thus, 4 ceramic disc samples were fabricated: (G) 0.5 mm zirconia- as a control group, (G1) 0.5 mm zirconia and 0.5 mm feldspathic, (G2) 1.0 mm zirconia and 0.5 mm feldspathic and (G3) 2.0 mm zirconia and 0.5 mm feldspathic ceramic layer. 2 different dual cure cements were polymerized using a LED curing unit. Degree of conversion was evaluated using Vickers Hardness Test and depths of cure of samples were measured. Data were analyzed statistically using One-way ANOVA and Tukey’s HSD test (p<0.05).

Results:

Microhardness and depth of cure values were different under same thickness of ceramic discs for two resin cements. As the thickness of the zirconia discs increased, the microhardness values and depth of cure decreased.

Conclusion:

Photocuring time cannot be the same for all clinical conditions, under thicker zirconia restorations (>2.0 mm), an extended period of light curing or a light unit with a high irradiance should be used.

Dual resin cement knoop hardness after different activation modes through dental ceramics

This study investigated the influence of ceramic compositions on Knoop Hardness Number (KHN) immediately and 24 h after polymerization and the effect of activation modes on the KHN of a resin cement. Ten Panavia F 2.0 resin cement discs were activated either directly using curing light, or chemically without light, or through 1.2-thick ceramic discs. The following ceramics were evaluated: Duceram, Cergogold, IPS Empress, IPS Empress 2, Procera, Cercon, In Ceram Alumina and In Ceram Zirconia. The KHN was obtained immediately and after 24-h testing time. Two-way ANOVA and Tukey's test were performed for statistical analysis (p<0.05). Direct activation showed higher KHN than activation through ceramics and chemical activation for both immediate and 24-h post activation. The KHN for 24-h post activation time was higher than that of the immediate post activation time except for the direct activation mode. The glass and di-silicate based ceramics showed higher KHN than alumina- and zirconia-based ceramics, immediately and after 24-h. The reinforced and opaque ceramics had the lowest KHN. The ceramic composition resulted in light attenuation, lower polymerization and lower KHN, and the 24-h testing time promoted an improvement of KHN except for direct activation mode.

Effect of light-curing units, post-cured time and shade of resin cement on knoop hardness

The aim of this study was to evaluate the Knoop hardness after 15 min and 24 h of different shades of a dual-cured resin-based cement after indirect photoactivation (ceramic restoration) with 2 light-curing units (LCUs). The resin cement Variolink II (Ivoclar Vivadent) shade XL, A2, A3 and opaque were mixed with the catalyst paste and inserted into a black Teflon mold (5 mm diameter x 1 mm high). A transparent strip was placed over the mold and a ceramic disc (Duceram Plus, shade A3) was positioned over the resin cement. Light-activation was performed through the ceramic for 40 s using quartz-tungsten-halogen (QTH) (XL 2500; 3M ESPE) or light-emitting diode (LED) (Ultrablue Is, DMC) LCUs with power density of 615 and 610 mW/cm2, respectively. The Koop hardness was measured using a microhardness tester HMV 2 (Shimadzu) after 15 min or 24 h. Four indentations were made in each specimen. Data were subjected to ANOVA and Tukey's test (a=0.05). The QTH LCU provided significantly higher (p<0.05) KHN values than the LED LCU. When the post-cure times were compared for the same shade, QTH and LED at 24 h provided significantly higher (p<0.05) KHN values than at 15 min. It may be concluded that the Knoop hardness was generally dependent on the LCU and post-cure time. The opaque shade of the resin cement showed lower Knoop hardness than the other shades for both LCUs and post-cure times.

UV-Vis spectrophotometric analysis and light irradiance through hot-pressed and hot-pressed-veneered glass ceramics

This study evaluated the irradiance of curing units through core and veneered hot-pressed ceramics as well as the transmittance of these materials. Discs of 0.7, 1.4 and 2 mm in thickness of Empress (EMP) and Empress Esthetic (EST), and 0.8 (n=5) and 1.1 mm (n=5) thickness of Empress 2 (E2) were obtained. For E2, two of the 0.8-mm-thick discs were covered with dentin (1.2- and 1.4-mm-thick) and two with dentin + enamel (1.5-mm-thick). The 1.1-mm-thick specimens were submitted to the same veneering procedures. Specimens were evaluated by UV-Vis transmittance analysis and the percentage of transmittance was recorded. Irradiance through each specimen was evaluated with a quartz-tungsten-halogen (QTH), used in continuous or intermittent exposure modes, or a blue light-emitting diode (LED). Data were analyzed by Dunnett's test, ANOVA and Tukey's test at 5% significance level. Exposure through ceramic decreased the irradiance for all ceramics. Irradiance through EST was significantly higher than through EMP. For E2, reduction in irradiance depended on the core and/or veneer thickness. The QTH intermittent mode showed higher irradiance than the continuous mode, and both showed higher irradiance than LED. The ceramic significantly influenced irradiance and transmittance, which were found to decrease with the increase in thickness.