Influence of finishing time on marginal sealing ability of new generation composite bonding systems

Although variation in finishing techniques has been shown to affect microle akage, little research has been published on the influence of finishing tim e on the marginal sealing ability of new generation composite bonding syste ms. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the influence of fin ishing time on the enamel and dentine marginal sealing ability of four new generation composite systems. Two class V preparations, which were solely i n enamel or dentine, were made on the buccal surfaces of 96 freshly extract ed molar teeth. The teeth were randomly divided into four groups of 24 and restored with composite resin (Silux Plus(R)) utilizing the following bondi ng systems: Scotchbond Multi-purpose(R), Fuji Bond LC(R), Prime & Bond 2.0( R) and Bisco One-step(R). Half of the restorations in each group were finis hed immediately after light polymerization and stored for 1 week. For the r emaining restorations, finishing was delayed for 1 week. The storage medium was isotonic saline at 37 degrees C throughout the experiment. All restora tions were then thermocycled, subjected to dye penetration testing, section ed and scored. The results suggest that the finishing of composite restorat ions, bonded with the bonding systems evaluated, should be carried out imme diately after light polymerization. Delayed finishing does not improve but instead can be detrimental to the marginal seal of the restorations. The ef fects of delayed finishing are, however, both bonding system and tissue spe cific.