In Vitro Weight Loss of Dental Composite Resins and Glass-Ionomer Cements Exposed to a Challenge Simulating the Oral Intake of Acidic Drinks and Foods

Abstract

Specific conditions of the oral cavity, such as intake of acidic drinks, foods, and drugs, represent a damage both for teeth as well as restorative materials. The aim of this in vitro study is to assess the influence of an acidic challenge on the weight loss of biomimetic restorative dental materials (composite resins and glass-ionomer cements, respectively). Seven products recently available in the marked have been tested in this study for the two kinds of materials, respectively. Resin composites were divided into Groups 1A–7A, whereas glass-ionomer cements into Groups 1B–7B. A total of six samples was considered for each group, among which two were stored into distilled water (control samples) whereas the other four were immersed into soft drink (Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Company, Milano, Italy) for 7 days. Respectively, after 1, 3 and 7 days, weight was assessed for each sample and the percentage weight loss was calculated. For all the composite resins (Groups 1A–7A), no significant intergroup or intragroup differences occurred for the weight loss values (p > 0.05). Conversely, all glass-ionomers (Groups 1B–7B) showed a significant and progressive weight loss after 1, 3, and 7 days of acid challenge (p < 0.05) (intragroup differences). This reduction was significantly lower in case of GC Equia Forte + Coat and ChemFil Rock, with respect to the other cements (p < 0.05) (intergroup differences). In conclusions, all the biomimetic composite resins showed a reliable behavior when exposed to acidic erosion, whereas glass-ionomers cements generally tended to solubilize. However, the additional use of a protective layer above these latter materials could reduce this event. Despite these results appear to be interesting from a clinical point of view, future morphological evaluations should be conducted to evaluate the superficial changes of the materials after acidic explosion.

Polymerization Shrinkage, Hygroscopic Expansion, Elastic Modulus and Degree of Conversion of Different Composites for Dental Application

“…Previous studies have already verified that the water sorption can cause dimensional and weight alterations in the material after polymerization [40][41][42]. Some authors [40], showed a positive correlation between the absorbed water mass and the volume alteration.…”

“…Previous studies have already verified that the water sorption can cause dimensional and weight alterations in the material after polymerization [40][41][42]. Some authors [40], showed a positive correlation between the absorbed water mass and the volume alteration. Water sorption promotes significant effects in the structure, physical properties, and dimensional alterations of composite materials with different organic matrix [43].…”

“…All composites had a great reduction in volume just after the polymerization, reducing slowly until 24 h. After the water immersion, the volume trend showed an inverse progression that stabilized after 10,000 cycles. The reason and the amount of polymer hygroscopic expansion depends on many factors, such as the type of matrix, filler, bonding between filler and organic matrix, and the volumetric ratio between the inorganic and organic matrix [40,42,48]. Another study pointed to a great expansion occurring at the first week and a gradual increase, however slow, during the first six months [41].…”

Damage from Carbonated Soft Drinks on Enamel: A Systematic Review

“…No matter when they were consumed, other acidic meals and beverages were not linked to tooth damage [ 40 ]. Certain oral cavity situations, such as the use of acidic drinks, meals, and medicines, endanger not just teeth but also restorative materials in the oral cavity [ 92 , 93 , 94 ]. In reality, all of the composite resins tested exhibited good resistance to acid assaults, with the exception of glass ionomer cements, which tended to disintegrate [ 92 ].…”

“…Certain oral cavity situations, such as the use of acidic drinks, meals, and medicines, endanger not just teeth but also restorative materials in the oral cavity [ 92 , 93 , 94 ]. In reality, all of the composite resins tested exhibited good resistance to acid assaults, with the exception of glass ionomer cements, which tended to disintegrate [ 92 ]. The placement of a protective layer over the latter components may limit the incidence of this occurrence [ 92 ].…”