Introduction
There is a growing demand for post and core systems that offer both ease of use and efficiency. Recently introduced dual-cure build-up and post cement materials exhibit properties similar to dentin. The objective of this laboratory experiment is to compare the fracture resistance among three distinct post and core systems and identify the locations of failures within each group.
Material and methods
This in vitro experimental study involved 30 epoxy resin-based blocks (Endo Training Bloc J, Dentsply Sirona, Ballaigues, Switzerland) divided into three groups: The first group was a post space preparation and restoration with a fiber post (RelyX™ Fiber Post, 3M ESPE, Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States) 1.6 mm in diameter and 10 mm in length (Group A) where core build-up and cementation were performed using a dual-cure build-up and cement for endodontic post resin material (Core X Flow, Dentsply DeTrey, Konstanz, Germany). The second group was a post space preparation and restoration using a dual-cure build-up and cement for endodontic post resin material, 10 mm in length filled with resin but without fiber post placement (Group B). The third group was where post space and core were filled and restored with a dual-cure build-up and cement for endodontic post resin material, 5 mm in length and without fiber post placement (Group C). Subsequently, samples were mounted and tested using a universal testing machine (Instron, Canton, Massachusetts, United States), and the fracture site was located.
Results
Significant differences were identified among the three groups, indicating the impact of both post length and type on fracture resistance (p-value <0.05). Group B exhibited the highest mean compressive strength resistance and maximum load at 899.3330 (N), followed by Group C at 848.9690 (N) and Group A at 751.9620 (N). The predominant failures in the samples were core fractures or debonding of the core material.
Conclusion
All-resin posts demonstrated high fracture resistance, unlike fiber posts which displayed inferior fracture resistance.